Alive!
by Cesna Rose
Summary: Goten and Trunks follow a strange hooded figure to the depths of space in search of one very dear to them that was lost three years ago... Ensue random space adventures and hilarity. Chapter 12 FINALLY up!
1. It's impossible right?

Author's note: Sorry, no more funny author's notes. Why? Because rules changed at ff.net. Maybe some of us could start a petition to change it, but I dunno. ::sigh:: Anyway, to the story, that's what it's really about anyway.  
  
Thank you for the reviews.  
  
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"Mom, I'm going by to see Gohan. See ya in a few!"  
  
Getting ready to walk out of the door was a teenager of sixteen. Voice deep, hair cropped a little short, at least compared to when he was thirteen. He wore a gray t-shirt with a dark blue over shirt, unbuttoned. He wore almost black navy jeans that flopped over his shoes, and had on a black tire rubber watch.  
  
"Okay, Goten. Be home by dinner." Chi-Chi said, smiling weakly. Three years since her oldest died. Time was healing the wounds slowly. But at least they were healing. They all thought Gohan's death would tear them apart, but it actually brought them together, and made them more agreeable to things. Chi-Chi hardly ever yelled anymore, and even then it was only occasionally at Goku, but she would stop after a moment, sigh, and drop it. No reason to hold onto anger, it was so trivial.  
  
Though there was one thing that had changed, and they all greatly missed. Besides Gohan, of course, was Goku's humor. It seemed to all but vanish since Gohan came down with the illness. He laughed, still, of course... But always seemed to be training. He was grimmer. More stoic.  
  
Gochi grew up to be relatively undeterred from who she was destined to become, which was a happy carefree young girl who never held onto her emotions and bottled them up. If she felt sad about Gohan's death, she would simply cry and move on. If she was happy, she would voice it. If she was angry... She could be a whole lot like Chi-Chi.  
  
Goten was the one they weren't sure about. He seemed to be completely fine on the outside, keeping his promise to follow Gohan's footsteps to be the best older brother he could be, but at other times, he seemed so disconnected and constantly visited his brother's grave. No one could tell whether this was out of denial or acceptance, respect or yearning. Either way, he kept going, and today, two months after turning sixteen, he was in for a surprise.  
  
He arrived at Gohan's site of burial and meandered in, and Son Goten seemed to undergo a transformation. No longer the spark of childhood shone in his eyes. Instead it was replaced with the maturity of adulthood, holding onto something very painful, a burden had been set on him, and he seemed weary from it. It was something he promised to let go of a long time ago, but had never been able to do so. Everyday the burden grew heavier, but he was determined not to let anyone see, in fear of losing respect. The only one who was able to see through this veil, was his father. It seemed that the more depressed Goten became, the more serious Goku became.  
  
He plopped down five feet from Gohan's grave, bowing his head for several moments before saying his respect.  
  
"Hey Gohan."  
  
No response, as usual. But he was used to it after three years of no response from his older brother... Goten smiled. "I wish you wish you were here, bro, life just hasn't been the same without you. Dad's not dad, Gochi cries randomly, and mom doesn't even yell anymore! Not to say that isn't positive... But we all miss you so much. You would be twenty four right now. And married to that Videl girl too." Goten laughed. "Speaking of Videl... You probably already know... I just heard from Trunks the other day... that accident she was in? You know, a month after your death... Forensic scientists have finally determined that was suicide. Not that she hasn't told you already. But I admire her bravery, for being able to go through with something like that...  
  
"Life has changed so much, not on the outside looking in of course. But everyone is different. Bulma spends more time with her family. Vegeta's not as harsh. Krillin visits more often, along with Marron and sometimes even 18... It's just not fair, that it had to take your death to cause... all of this harmony between us... Why couldn't it happen while you were still alive?" Goten choked on his words, holding back his tears, as if to cry would admit that he wasn't strong enough to deal, to live on, to make his brother proud. "I just wish you were here... Everything would be perfect..."  
  
Goten laid back on the cool, damp grass. So much he wanted to just be able to live life to it's fullest, to soar to heights even his father could not reach, to save everyone for once, but to no avail. The only reason he knew time was passing was because the sun had pass far out of his field of vision, making the scene around him hazy from the lack of clarifying light. Deciding it was close to dinner, he stretched himself out and rose up, wondering what was for dinner in a desperate attempt to forget his brother was indeed dead, and laying five feet from him.  
  
Now usually, Goten avoided looking into the clear casket and upon the face of the perfectly preserved Gohan, for it eerily looked as if he was only sleeping, and not dead. It gave him misplaced hope, that any second he would open his eyes and tell him he was stupid for being so worried... He glanced back, unsure why he was doing so, and eyes widened in horror at what he saw.  
  
Doing an almost double-take, Goten walked closer to the casket, mouth hanging open slightly in disbelief. He rubbed his eyes quickly, and looked again. No change. He thrust open the casket, hand shaking. He couldn't believe it. It was impossible!  
  
There was nothing inside. 


	2. We're on our way!

Author's note: Sorry, not more funny author's notes, yadda yadda yadda. Rules changed. Could loose entire story. Bleh.  
  
This chapter introduces a character, Veda, that you might vaguely remember from 'Bring me to Life'. I'm going to replace the chapter she and all her friends were in to edit them out. Why? Because I've decided to make a NEW DBXLV (the dimension I write in), only introducing Veda. Will write that later. Just know this, Veda is Vegeta's niece (trust me, that will make sense in later convo's between characters and maybe some flashbacks) and lived with Goku for awhile, but has been living at the Capsule Co. for four years. She met the gang when she was 10. She's now 15. Sorry for that long explanation....  
  
And thank you for the reviews.  
  
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::Chapter Two (really one, but w/e)::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
Goten couldn't believe it. Before his very eyes, was the empty casket of his dead brother. He took a step back, aghast at the different possibilities before him. What did this mean? For one, this meant he, his brother, was no longer inside. He was somewhere else. Alive?! Was he not in there because he was alive? No, that would mean dragon balls. Dragon balls? He just saw him in there not two weeks ago. Did he though? Did he check? Would he have noticed? When was the last time he actually peered into the cursed thing?  
  
He seriously couldn't remember the last time he checked Gohan's casket. Could he have been alive for long? NO, Goten! He can't be alive! It's been too long since he died to come back! A year, that was the limit right? And besides, he died of natural causes. That would make it impossible.  
  
Lightheaded. Still dead. Not coming back. Quit fantasizing, Goten. He's not coming back.  
  
He's still in the casket.  
  
Not in the casket! Where? Where could he be?  
  
Goten's thoughts were going to fast for him to really grasp onto. It made no sense. Bulma had security here, so he couldn't have gotten away without anyone noticing. Then what happened? A strange and disturbing thought entered his head. Did someone come and get his body? And if so, for what reason? He grimaced at the thought. Someone stole his brother's body. A dull feeling entered the tips of his fingers. Also, a feeling of shame came over him as well. How could he let this happen? His brother, dead, unable to defend his body. Why should Goten care though? It didn't mean Gohan was coming back, if his body was there or not. But still. A dreadful feeling came over him...  
  
Okay. Goten slid back into a pew, the last time it having been used was three years ago, almost four, when he died. One of two things happened today. ONE. Gohan's alive. Highly unlikely. TWO. Someone stole his body. Just as unlikely. He had to talk to someone. He had to figure this out. Before taking off to the sky, he had to check one more time, just to make sure.  
  
Still empty.  
  
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The day had been relatively normal for Trunks Briefs. That is, until a certain 'best friend' had gone COMPLETLEY INSANE.  
  
"Goten. THAT'S COMPLETLEY INSANE." Trunks growled, and continued typing on the computer. "I've got homework to do. This program is due tomorrow, and I have this glitch I can't quite figure out—"  
  
"TRUNKS!!! You have to believe me. His casket is EMPTY!" Goten cried. Trunks ceased his typing, a doubtful look in his eyes, and looked disapprovingly at Goten. Trunks had let his hair grow out a bit, and for the most part kept it tied back at the base of his head, but it wasn't long enough to keep his front bangs out of his face. Currently he was wearing a black tank top and teal gi pants.  
  
"Goten." Trunks said slowly. "Do you realize how insane that sounds? My mother has a security ring. We have a camera on over there."  
  
Goten narrowed his brows. "You have a camera watching my brother's grave?"  
  
"My mom has a camera on EVERYTHING. She would have more, but, you know, it's a grave...."  
  
"So it's unlikely that someone got in."  
  
"Correct."  
  
"So someone got out?"  
  
"....What?!"  
  
"Because Gohan's not there anymore."  
  
Trunks let out a small cry of frustration. "Goten, there isn't any way that he could be gone!!!"  
  
"BUT HE IS."  
  
"You know what? We're going over there RIGHT NOW so I can prove you wrong, so I can get back to my code."  
  
Trunks stormed past Goten, and Goten has a small, victorious smile on his face. "Trunks, you will be way more surprised than you think..." He followed after him, determined to find out what happened to Gohan's body.  
  
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They were about to arrive at Gohan's burial site. But just before walking up to the gates, Trunks paused and gave Goten a glare over his shoulder.  
  
"Now before I prove you wrong, you have to promise not to yell, cry, make excuses, or bother me about how 'it was so totally gone before', okay? Goten, I know it hurts that your big bro died, but it's been almost four years. I don't mean to be insensitive, but you can't go on thinking he's going to come back."  
  
"I never said he was alive Trunks! I just know he's gone!" Goten retorted. "Now let's get in there and figure out what happened."  
  
"I think we need to figure out what happened to your BRAIN." Trunks muttered, swiped his identity card through the gate security, and opened the gate. They walked through the two sides of black pews, towards the white casket, with the clear glass that seemed to be lying to everyone...  
  
Just before Trunks could peer into the empty thing, Goten felt a chill run up his spine. Laughter. Light. Taunting. Teasing. ...Familiar? It was behind him. Didn't Trunks hear it? It...It... It couldn't be. It was becoming louder. Trunks felt Goten's hesitance. He looked back.  
  
"Oh? You think that maybe your eyes WERE playing tricks on you Got-... What...? Who in the hell are you?" He spouted, looking past Goten. Goten couldn't bring himself to look back, he knew who it was, but, no it couldn't be. It just couldn't. Trunks braced himself, while Goten just lowered his head, fists tight and trembling.  
  
"You won't find him here. He's gone." The voice was powerful and intimidating, but held a hint of something that wasn't quite right, something that was perhaps inviting in a mildly joking manner, yet it was completely misplaced. Goten shuddered. Trunks gasped. He spun around and checked the casket.  
  
"OH MY F()CKING KAMI HE REALLY IS GONE!!!!!!" Trunks screamed out, unbelieving. Goten slid his gaze back towards the intruder, shy and scared at the same time, afraid of what he would see.  
  
A cloaked figure was at the gate of the clearing. He had a twisted smile, and his eyes were hidden by the shadow of the setting sun. "Gone. Gone from that prison. Now he is somewhere else... You won't find him."  
  
Goten trembled. "You know where he is, don't you?"  
  
The figure didn't move an inch, but his smile grew a little.  
  
Goten faced the intruder, with Trunks screaming and going through the possibilities in out loud, and screamed. "Is he alive?!"  
  
"Alive is an ambiguous term." The figure replied, and turned. "You won't find him. Your questions are futile." He began to walk away.  
  
"GET BACK HERE!" Goten screamed out and charged after him. Trunks lifted his sight from the glass coffin and looked after Goten, still in shock and unable to find it in himself to help his friend.  
  
The figure halted. "Not wise."  
  
Goten flew back, the cloaked figures ki hitting him head on, sending him past Trunks and through the steel gates. Trunks cried out after his friend, rushing to his aid.  
  
"You will not find him here. Not on this mudball." The figure laughed, hand outstretched, his ki having moved so fast Trunks was barley able to tell that it had happened. Suddenly he was surrounded by a pale blue aura, then he rocketed off into the sky, leaving the ground unsettled in his wake.  
  
"Goten, Goten! Are you okay?!" Trunks cried, attempting to pull his friend out of the gate, some hair falling into his face as he did so, and his eyes wide and full of worry.  
  
Goten grunted, eyes tight in pain. He forced as smile as Trunks pulled him out, and helped him up. "He didn't even try to hit me hard... But man..." He forced himself to stand on his own. "He knows where Gohan is. I just know it. They stole his body, Trunks! We have to get after him!"  
  
"We need help. He is way to powerful..."  
  
"He'll get away Trunks! He said Gohan's not even on the planet!"  
  
"Even if we catch him we won't be able to beat him Goten! We-need-help!!"  
  
"WE DON'T HAVE TIME!" Goten threw himself into the sky, upbursting pebbles and dirt underneath, and Trunks following.  
  
"He's leaving the planet, right?" Trunks cried as they flew in the direction of the mysterious ki. Goten kept a stern look on his face, but cringed slightly.  
  
"I guess that would make sense. But how would you know?"  
  
"I'll keep track of his ki, and if I feel him leaving the planet, I'll go super saiyan. In the mean time I'll be trying to sneak a space ship out of my house in a capsule. Grandpa should be having a good one lying around. But for now you get home, and maybe convince your dad to help, okay?"  
  
Goten slowed his frantic flight, and studied Trunks face. If it were any other time, he would have smiled and agreed, but adrenalin was pumping so hard in his body, he just wanted to FIGHT. He supposed that was his father in him. Saiyan blood.... Such a curse, but a blessing all the same. His human half pulled him down a little, and he was only able to get a nod out to Trunks.  
  
"Alright Goten. Maybe get some dinner too. You'll probably need it."  
  
As Goten watched Trunks fly away, he nearly laughed. In such a desperate attempt to catch the man he was after, he had already lost track of his ki.  
  
"Trunks, I hope you can still feel him...." He flew off towards his house.  
  
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"Goten, why are you home so late? We had dinner two hours ago..."  
  
"Sorry mom. I was visiting over at Trunks house." Goten quipped quickly, not sure how to get his mom or dad in on what happened this evening. He was still breathing heavy, having just walked into the bright house, the peace inside of it nearly disgusting him. Gochi, his preteen sister, was laid out over the couch reading her most recent issue of 'Teen Magazine', and Chi-Chi was sweeping the kitchen.  
  
"I can tell it too. It looks as if you've been playing too hard."  
  
"Mom, I don't 'play' anymore. It's called training."  
  
"Training for what?" She asked, truly confused. "There's not some sort of monster trying to destroy the world again, is there?"  
  
"Ug. Never mind. Where's dad?"  
  
"He went outside after dinner. He should be back soon."  
  
Goten smiled and was about to say his thanks to his mother and go after his father, but he felt a slight rise in Trunks power. Uneasy, he simply waved to his mom to go find his dad. Chi-Chi didn't protest, thankfully, she simply shook her head and went back to finishing the kitchen floor.  
  
Back outside, it was getting more dim by the second, because the sun was setting, leaving a pale blue towards the horizon, but as it reached up high into the sky the darkness of night was already apparent. Goten had to find his dad soon. It was fairly easy enough to find his ki, and he followed it into a nearby forest. Good thing his dad wasn't far off, but he was only half paying attention, because Trunks ki was steadily rising, giving Goten a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach.  
  
"Goten?"  
  
He nearly stumbled over his step, having nearly run into the back of his father. Goku wore a concerned look on his face, raising up from his defensive stance, whereas four years ago he would have greeted his son with a teasing smile. Goten laughed nervously. "Oh. Hey dad. I was just... uh... I was simply, uh, I, you know...."  
  
Goku smiled lopsidedly, and brushed some dirt off of his arms, and stretched his arms a bit. "Cummon son, spit it out. It's okay." A light, dry laughter came after this as Goten continued to stammer. What was he supposed to tell his dad? 'Oh, hey, you know... Gohan's body is missing from his grave and this guy came up and told us indirectly that he stole his body and is getting ready to leave the planet so we have to get after him before it's too late?!' That sounded REALLY sane. He opened his mouth to say just that, when his jaw locked.  
  
Trunks.  
  
His power.  
  
Super saiyan.  
  
No time!!!  
  
"Dad, could you instant transmit me over to Trunks house?" Goten pleaded desperately.  
  
Goku narrowed his eyes to the horizon. "Does it have anything to do with his power suddenly rising...?"  
  
Goten's stomach sank. Thinking on his feet was something he was NOT good at, but he gave it a shot. "Oh, it's a... ha ha! Game we're playing. Yes. A game. We're playing... uh... Global hide and go seek. Ha! Won't he get a surprise when I show up so quickly. Ha. You'll have to teach me this trick dad. It would make the game so much more fun. Ha ha. Yes."  
  
Oh man, he could punch himself in the face.  
  
Goku gave Goten a disbelieving look, but grabbed his shoulder tight, and brought his two fingers to his forehead.  
  
While he was too preoccupied now to appreciate it, Goten loved doing this. The whole world around him seeming to simply go lopsided, it made him queasy with childlike glee. Then, the static came, and a pulling feeling tugged at his stomach, and before they knew it, they were right outside the Capsule Co. building.  
  
"Oh! Thanks dad. Love you. Got to go. Now get back to the house before Trunks figures out I got your help!"  
  
Goku paused, looking into Goten's eyes affectionately. "It's okay son. Don't lie to me. I know what you have to do. Do you think I didn't feel what happened? Go on. I'll cover for you while you get out of here. I think it's time for you to finally grow up."  
  
Tears fought their way suddenly up. "Dad, I'll be back as soon as I can, I promise!" He flung his arms around his father in a tight hug, and Goku reciprocated it, nearly hesitantly. "I'll make you and Gohan proud!"  
  
Pulling away from his father quickly, he ran off around the building, Goku smiling after him. "Goten, I hope you find what you're looking for. We'll be waiting for you son..."  
  
Just then, Bulma came out of the front door, looking puzzled. "Goku? What's going on?" Once again her hair was short and straight, and walked up to Goku, her large blue eyes suspicious behind her glasses.  
  
A nervous laugh came up, and Goku searched his brain quickly. "Uh... you see, the boys are playing 'Global Hide-and-Go-Seek...'"  
  
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"Trunks!"  
  
"Goten!"  
  
Goten ran up in the large back field of the Briefs. Trunks had powered down from super saiyan, apparently, because his long lavender hair was back to normal.  
  
"Listen, that guy joined a bunch of different powerful ki! They just started leaving the Earth, and I've got our fastest ship Goten!" Trunks said quickly, grabbing his arm and running off, Goten stumbling to keep up. "The Capsule Five, and I've got it already set up and ready to go!! Right... over..." Trunks slowed down to a slow walk. "...here..."  
  
It was a beautiful ship. A bit smaller than what Goku used to get to Namek so many years ago, when Gohan was only a small boy. It was so new that it was still just a white ball, without the logo of Capsule Co. on it. The only thing that kept them from going inside, was because there was something unexpected waiting for them.  
  
"So, you guys think you're leaving? Without me?"  
  
"Oh... Hey Veda..." Trunks laughed.  
  
Goten's stomach, not for the first time that day, dropped. Trunks' punk of a cousin. Standing there, in front of the ramp of the ship. Her unruly brown hair in reaching spikes just beyond her shoulders, narrow teal eyes, t-shirt and jeans, waving tail behind her... In the very posture of her younger stature, it all implied that she was going to cause trouble.  
  
"Veda, please." Goten pleaded. "We have to get out of here. We have to leave, to get after..."  
  
"I know, you idiot." Veda snapped, her teal eyes flashing violently at Goten. He cringed. "...And I'm coming with you. Things are way to boring on this planet." She sneered.  
  
"You can't come with us!" Trunks cried, throwing his arms into the air in frustration. "You'll just get in the way. I don't even think you can turn Super Saiyan yet you brat!"  
  
"I'll scream." The look on her face was eerily calm.  
  
"Veda, no..."  
  
"Please Veda! Not now!"  
  
A triumphant smirk came over her face as she breathed in deeply, opening her mouth do comply...  
  
Suddenly, she was found with Trunks strong hand over her mouth, arms pinned with his other arm, and Goten heaving up her legs, as they ran inside with her, while she was attempting to scream and break away.  
  
"Okay, fine, we just gotta go!" Trunks wailed, them tossing her aside on the pale brown tile floor of the ship. Trunks flew into the seat in front of the computer, typing and mashing button quickly. Goten barley had time to let the soft setting of the room, with the giant machine running through the middle of the thing and white walls before the ramp slid up with a –chink- and the door slamming shut, sending a shudder through machine. Even though she was just getting ready to throw a tempter tantrum a second ago, Veda was looking around, completely in awe of what was getting ready to happen.  
  
"Hold onto something, cause here we go!"  
  
With one last slam onto a button, the whir of machinery exploded around them. Goten stepped back, feeling like he was going to vomit. Veda clung onto the machine in the middle of the room, she felt a tremendous power all around her.  
  
Then, they were gone.  
  
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	3. We are so totally SCREWED

Author's note: Sorry, no more funny author's notes. Why? Because rules changed at ff.net. Maybe some of us could start a petition to change it, but I dunno. ::sigh:: Anyway, to the story, that's what it's really about anyway.  
  
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::We're Screwed:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
Goku NEARLY had Bulma convinced of this whole 'Global-Hide-And-Go- Seek' thing, when a wave of deafening power sent a shock through the air. Caught completely off guard, she was thrown off of her feet and sent flying into Goku, who was knowingly looking into the sky after the boys, and as he would later figure out, Veda. A small smile crept up on his face when the orb was no longer in sight, and the roar of the engine was no longer screeching in their ears.  
  
Bulma, however, reacted slightly different than he.  
  
"WHAT IN THE HECK WAS THAT?!?" She shrieked, turning around yet still cowering into Goku's chest.  
  
"Goten and Trunks." Goku said simply, his eyes still on the spot where the ship disappeared in the sky.  
  
Bulma turned and looked at Goku, dumbfounded. "You... KNOW what's going on? ...And I don't?"  
  
This concept struck the genius as very, very disturbing.  
  
Goku looked down into Bulma's eyes, a glint there that Bulma had thought was long lost. The smile he wore wasn't very large, or profound, but there was that knowing look. The look that always made Bulma know everything was going to be okay, no matter what was happening. "They're going to find Gohan."  
  
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"I've found their signal!!" Trunks yelled, but his voice never reached the ears of Goten, nor Veda for that matter. Pumping, churning, and howling machinery exploded all around them, drowning out any other noise of lesser power. Nor could Trunks hear Goten's screams, or Veda's profanities. She was clinging tightly to the machine running through the center of the room, while Goten was using all his might to look out of a window. They had long lost sight of Capsule Co., and they had just probably entered the stratosphere, the outermost layer of the Earth's atmosphere.  
  
Trunks pulled down three switches. The ship stabilized it's speeds, the main rockets were turned off.  
  
"They should be...." He pushed a small blue button, and on the large monitor appeared a visual of what was directly in front of them. Goten pulled away from the wall of the ship with uneasy knees, while Veda decided she would stay right where she was. "There!"  
  
A corner of the blue Earth was visible in the lower right corner of the screen, and a long, large ship was seen just leaving the atmosphere of Earth. Goten stared in awe, it seeming like he was only watching a movie. Suddenly a strange fear overcame him as he took in that he was NOT on Earth anymore. He stepped back from the screen.  
  
A box appeared in the upper left of the screen. In it was the face of the man they saw earlier, still cloaked.  
  
'Go back' His lips did not move when he said this.  
  
"Like hell we will." Trunks snorted, pulling back a lever to increase their speed towards the ship. Goten grabbed the back of his chair to steady himself.  
  
'GO BACK'  
  
"Make us. Think next time before you go grave robbing!" Trunks roared, pulling the lever more. Almost upon them... Goten could now make out the different parts of the ships, the exact color, the details of the giant guns on it....  
  
...oh crap...  
  
A mangled cry of warning didn't get a chance to come from Goten's throat, because it came from Veda first.  
  
"TRUNKS YOU IDIOT!!! DODGE OR WE'RE GOING TO—"  
  
A blinding light overcame them, none of them even realizing they were screaming even after all went dark.  
  
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Sticky. Sticky, everything was uncomfortable. An absence of all knowledge, memories, or an awareness in general. Except for the sticky uncomfort...  
  
I am Son Goten. I am almost seventeen years old. Searching... for...  
  
Son Gohan.  
  
A groan came from the pit of his throat, and memories flooded back. He had to get up. He had to find out. Was everyone okay? A pulsing pain came from his head, which seemed to be where the stickiness was coming from. Uug, it was blood... He was also really cold, and it was dark...  
  
Opening his eyes didn't make things much lighter. Goten could barley make out the shapes inside of the ship, and felt as if he was lopsided and off balance, even though he was on the ground. He whimpered as he tried to pull his head up, cringing at the volt of pain sent through him.  
  
"...Go...ten?" Goten craned his head over, and saw Veda, whom had managed sitting up, but her eyes were set low, and she was clutching her shoulder, leaning against a wall near him. "We... we should not have done that..." Her brown hair was hiding most of her face, but he could see most of one of her eyes, looking at him with a look that simply seemed to be apologizing. He didn't have the energy to really respond to her, he could only think of the pain he was feeling. Seeing this, Veda inched her way over and peered closely at him. "Oh Goten..." She whispered, running her good hand through a little of his hair, and recoiling to find blood on her fingertips. "We've got to get you help..."  
  
He wanted to respond to her oddly soothing voice, but he could only look up into her face with a tired look on his face. It was odd. She was usually a screaming, arrogant tyrant (somewhat like Vegeta. Heh.), especially when she lived with them the first year she came to Earth. A soft flashback came over him...  
  
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He had only just turned ten, when he was out in the city with Gohan. They were out shopping for their mother, whom after yelling at Goku for crashing their car, told the boys to go out and get food for dinner. At least she hadn't asked for them to take Gochi along. Of course they took pit stops and checked out neat things like ice cream stands, but for the most part they kept their focus. It wasn't until they had just started looking at the groceries, did Goten notice a disturbance. First he heard the screaming. Then, only by the miracle of his saiyan eyesight, he saw a small girl run by. She only looked a little younger than him, and was wearing strange armor. Rugged auburn hair danced around her face as she ran. He tugged on Gohan's arm.  
  
"Big brother, what is she wearing?" He pointed at the girl.  
  
"What are you talking about Goten...?!" Gohan cried out in despair. "A tail!"  
  
Indeed, the young girl had a tail.  
  
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
After a short chase and a somewhat kidnapping, it was found the girl only spoke in saiyago, the foreign language of the saiyans. It took awhile for them to accept this fact (Especially Vegeta), yet after learning of Dr. Gero's cell collection, it was thought he perhaps created her. Yet this didn't explain why she only spoke saiyago or where she got the armor from. Eventually Bulma crossed her DNA with his father's and Vegeta's, and found her DNA closely resembled Vegeta's, meaning Dr. Gero probably used his to create her. Thus making her a sort of relative. Perhaps Vegeta accepted it, because he took her under his wing, as begrudgingly as he did. She didn't really have a name, and Bulma suggested Veda, meaning 'enigma' in saiyago.  
  
It was true Goten considered her as a sort of sister, especially after having lived with her so long, but there were things about her that he didn't understand... like her love of storms and desire of solitude. She was about as predictable as a computer as well, some days she would yell and scream and others she would dance to classical music in her room.  
  
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
"I had to resist the urge to kill him."  
  
"Come on, he's hurt really bad and probably delusional."  
  
"It doesn't mean I should let him get by with that."  
  
"Veda, it wasn't like he molested you in his sleep. It's a really bad head injury... and plus, you haven't even moved him, so I have a hard time believing that you don't like it!"  
  
Trunks had just finished slinging Veda's arm, and was just tending to Goten, who had fallen unconscious and his face was leaned against Veda's outer thigh. 


	4. It's a freaking miracle

Author's note: Sorry, no more funny author's notes. Why? Because rules changed at ff.net. Maybe some of us could start a petition to change it, but I dunno. ::sigh:: Anyway, to the story, that's what it's really about anyway.  
  
Thank you for the reviews.  
  
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::Chapter 4 'It's a freaking miracle"::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
Trunks let out a mangled cry and ran over, his heart pounding hard. Veda bust out laughing.  
  
"Wow, you really took me seriously?! You're really are stressed out, you know that? He still has his ki moron."  
  
Trunks was still. Eerily still. He had a blank look on his face, and his breathing became irregular. Veda stopped laughing, and a look of near fear came across her. "Uh, Trunks? It was just a joke. Dude, are you okay...?"  
  
He exploded. "YOU MORON!!! DON'T EVER SCARE ME LIKE THAT AGAIN HE'S MY BEST FRIEND IN THE WHOLE WORLD AND THE LAST THING I NEED IS SOME IDIOT MAKING ME THING HE'S DEAD!!!!!!!! AAAAAUG!" Trunks screamed at the top of his lungs, his eyes bulging out in pure rage, his fists shaking at his side. Veda recoiled against a wall and fell silent. Trunks breathed out in a tired sigh and plopped down. "...This sucks so bad. I wish there was a planet around here we could land on. Then I :might: be able to fix the ship enough to get home... But noooooo, nothing around, and our navigator is screwed up... nice..." He hung his head low. "Got any ideas Veda?"  
  
"Well, we could start by eating Goten—"  
  
"WE ARE NOT EATING GOTEN!" Trunks screamed. Veda smirked and looked away, while Trunks trembled in frustration and rage. Slowly, he let loose his tension, forcing himself to relax, and sighed. "...honestly, I can't believe you sometimes. What is wrong with your brain?"  
  
"I'm related to you, that's what."  
  
"OH! And I suppose it's a saiyan problem, then?"  
  
"Whatever, I don't know."  
  
"We're all going to die. And not fast enough either. This sucks so bad..." Trunks leaned back against a dented wall. "I don't know how this could suck more..."  
  
Just then, the lights went out.  
  
"Don't say it again." Veda whisper, when Trunks threw himself face down on the floor and let out a muffled screech of anger. "You might REALLY kill Goten."  
  
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Several hours went by, or at least that's what Trunks gauged by how his stomach was acting. Curse his saiyan heritage, and his need of massive quantities of food. He was really starting to get worried about Goten too. He hadn't stirred, and judging by the bump on his head he should have woken up by now. Trunks couldn't really tell, but it seemed to him that Goten's ki was steadily decreasing too. Could there be something else wrong with him? It wasn't until Veda shoved him lightly did he even realize he was asleep.  
  
"Idiot, I think I hear something. Look outside of the window."  
  
Trunks, in a dazed stupor, rolled over and pulled himself up to a window. He peered out of the small circular hole and squinted. "Whoa, what is THAT?"  
  
What he saw was a white cruise ship... in space... with rockets. "Okay, Veda, please tell me that you see that too..." It appeared to be about a hundred miles away.  
  
"Yeah, isn't that weird?" She asked. "It keeps on getting steadily closer too. You think it's coming after us?"  
  
"I really hope not... the last thing we need are some aliens trying to suck out our brains through our noses while we're this venerable. And why is that space ship shaped so funny!?!"  
  
Trunks was only SLIGHTLY confused as to why it was shaped as a cruise ship in this obscure part of the universe.  
  
"I dunno, but I really think it's coming after us."  
  
"Maybe it'll think we're a piece of junk. That's probably what we look like anyway." Trunks said hopefully, sliding down the wall, groaning to himself. Things just kept on getting worse and worse for them, and this space ship didn't exactly give him a warm fuzzy. Veda sat down next to him too.  
  
"So... Have you noticed that Goten's ki is dropping?"  
  
"YES I've noticed that! But what can I freaking do about it?" Trunks whined. "This isn't fair. I don't like just being able to do nothing about ANYTHING."  
  
"Quit complaining already!" Veda groaned. "Look at the bright side... we... um... well..." Trunks cocked an eyebrow at her, waiting for the supposed epiphany that should be coming on. "I know there's got to be something..."  
  
Just then, bright lights flooded into the ship from the small windows, making it... well... bright. This startled both of the saiyans. Trunks glared at Veda viciously.  
  
"Well, THERE'S your bright side Veda! And it's pretty freaking bright! BUT NOT AT ALL POSITIVE!!!!!!" He cried, throwing himself onto his back. "Just kill me now and save the aliens the trouble. If you don't because you've already committed suicide, it's okay, I'll just wait here and let them finish me off."  
  
"Oh, come off it." Veda snapped, peering out of the window, squinting the overpowering light out of her eyes. "Oh Kami."  
  
"What? Are they even more vicious than we expected?" Trunks moaned.  
  
"No... they're pulling us in with... like... the light or something..."  
  
Trunks felt like vomiting.  
  
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The obscure cruise space ship was gently gliding through the abyss of space, just recently having taken in what seemed to be a piece of junk, about thirty minutes ago, and Trunks Brief was RELIEVED. Ends up the whole place was a traveling hospital!  
  
"So... It was a complete coincidence you guys were here."  
  
"Correct sir. We were just taking a new shortcut to a planet we work at and happened to pull in your ship using a tractor beam."  
  
Trunks was jubilant. He was talking to a fairly human looking alien that was behind the receptionist counter, whom had long magenta pigtails. Her uniform consisted of a strange triangular narrow hat, a white blazer and skirt. She had light freckles and bright brown eyes, the only thing that hinted at her being an alien was her long pointed ears. The entire place was full of these female look-alikes; the only difference between them would be their hair length and color, and sometimes-different eye color. As soon as the light pulled them in they took Goten to the ER and gave Veda a better cast.  
  
"Amazing. It's a miracle. A freaking miracle." Trunks laughed. "This is so wonderful, I could dance and sing right now!" The magenta haired receptionist giggled.  
  
"I'm so happy we could help sir."  
  
"How much do you want for the services? I know it must be pricey, but I can probably..." Trunks dug around in his pockets, praying he brought his capsules along.  
  
"Oh no sir. We can't accept your payments, we help out of compassion for others." She told him, her eyes glittering in strange innocence.  
  
Trunks, having just found his capsules, was a little baffled. He put them away. "Wow... thanks. I don't know what to say, you guys saved our lives..."  
  
"It's our pleasure!" She chirped. Trunks smiled sheepishly.  
  
"Could you tell me what room number my friends are then? I want to see if they're okay..."  
  
"Oh, of course!"  
  
Trunks leaned against her desk, dreamily thinking of the comfort of home. Once he got the navigator fixed on the ship, pulled out some dents, fixed the wiring of the power ect., they would be home within a week. Ah, the bliss of civilization. And then, and only then, would they worry about this grave robbing psycho. Kami, he didn't want to worry about it right then and there.  
  
She pulled up their information. "Here's the room they're staying in, sir."  
  
Trunks thanked her and made his way. Too preoccupied by the relief he felt, he didn't notice the sadistic smile on her face...  
  
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Trunks nearly cried out from happiness to see Goten AWAKE when he walked into the room. Veda was already there, the same look of joy on her face as he. Goten was sitting up in bed, the lame bandages Trunks put on his head replaced by one more sophisticated wrap. The nurse had just finished wrapping up his torso, saying they had to mend muscles, which were causing him internal bleeding. 'Well...' Veda said. 'That would explain the ki issue...'. Now everything seemed to be fine, aside from Goten's lack of energy, but shouldn't that be expected from his injuries?  
  
"Once I get to work on the ship for a little, we'll be able to make our way back to Earth. Then figure out this whole thing!" Trunks sighed happily, sitting down on a chair, the nurse having left several minutes ago. "Quite obviously we really needed help for this. We'll talk to your dad and mine, and maybe get a ship with freaking weapons on it..." Trunks rambled, while Goten became really quiet and unresponsive. Veda was drawn in by Trunks now positive speaking. It took her a moment to notice that Goten seemed distressed. She looked over at him and cocked an eyebrow.  
  
"Goten, aren't you happy?" She asked.  
  
He didn't reply, but looked away from them.  
  
Trunks came out of his own fantasy, seeming to just now notice Goten did not share his optimism. "Hey dude, what's wrong?"  
  
"We need to get after that guy. He did something to Gohan's body."  
  
Veda noted that Goten's hands were clutched tight onto his sheets, knuckles white. She sighed. "Goten, getting killed won't help your brother. We need more information and help in order to pull this thing off."  
  
"She's right you know." Trunks said lightly. "I hate to say it too... We need to get home and tell everyone what happened"  
  
"He'll escape by then." Goten insisted, his tone becoming firm and stubborn. Trunks sighed, knowing that in Goten's current frame of mind, he wouldn't convince him otherwise. Veda made her way over to the small rectangular window across the room. It seemed to be her way of giving up the argument. Trunks rolled his eyes. He had no desire whatsoever to pursue this grave robbing guy, and less desire to argue with Goten.  
  
"Whatever Goten. I'm going to go fix our ship, and maybe those weird alien things have already fixed it. I doubt it though, it's not like we're paying them to help us. And I find that kind of weird..." Trunks rose from his seat and made way over to the door. He looked back briefly before leaving. "Hey man. Get better. We gotta bust this joint, whether going after this guy or going back home, alright?"  
  
Goten said nothing, but smiled.  
  
"Alright, I'm checking out." Trunks said and left the room. Veda fixed her eyes on something in the corner of the wall. She narrowed her eyes and walked up to it. Tapping it, she got a sinking feeling in her stomach.  
  
"They've got cameras in here..." She muttered, her gaze scanning the rest of the room, finding three more in the crevasses of the room.  
  
Goten looked quizzical. "Is that normal?" Veda shrugged.  
  
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It took Trunks awhile before he found where they had kept the ship. It was a narrow and tall docking bay, and not very well lit. The place was a strange brown hue and there were a few ships already there, which he paid no mind to. He groaned when he finally came across it.  
  
"It really is amazing we lived through this..." Trunks said as he went over everything that was wrong. It was hard to tell the shape used to be spherical, to be honest. As he went over the previously white –but now charred- walls of the ship, it really hit him hard how close they all were to death. Their ship was hardly salvageable. Darn. He was really hoping that he wouldn't have to make a new one.... He grunted audibly. Man, his mom was going to KILL him.  
  
"May I help you sir?" A perky, female voice called from behind. Trunks turned and saw three scantily clad nurses, all looking nearly identical to the ones in the main office. Rather, these were dressed appropriate for mechanical work, and all had short hair. Actually, the only differences between them were the colors of their hair (red, blue, and purple), and the one with red hair had freckles. Trunks nearly dropped his jaw... This was the last thing he was expecting. Some 'certain areas' were now aroused, making him want to just die on the spot.  
  
"Uuuuuuuuh..." He stammered, while they simply took over repair.  
  
"Don't worry about it sir!" The one with blue hair said chipperly. "We'll take care of everything! Just tell us what you need!"  
  
"Uuuuuuuuuh..." Trunks wanted nothing more than a cold shower.  
  
The one with red hair started fixing up the shell of the ship, working her way around, and as she passed Trunks, she brushed her bottom against his front. He recoiled violently, completely caught off guard. She giggled and continued with her work. Hiding himself behind a pillar, he watched the girls begin to buffer, rewire, and replace broken parts of the ship. What kind of place was this? Whenever he would need something, it would practically jump out at him. In the form of hot girls, nonetheless! Tugging feelings of lust began to settle in. He wasn't sure if it was the primal instinct of the saiyan in him... or if it was just normal.  
  
He shook his head. What was he THINKING?! That was the last thing he should be thinking about! Come on, his best friend was lying somewhere recovering from a nearly fatal accident, they were stranded in space, and... and... All the warm fuzzies he previously got from this place were completely gone! Suddenly, the girls all stopped working and looked back at him, confused.  
  
"What's wrong sir?" The one with purple hair asked, pouting her sparkling magenta lips. Oh Kami... sparkly lips... Trunks found himself thinking perverted thoughts again, and the girls giggled. He snapped out of it quickly.  
  
"Um, nothing... Thanks for your help! I'll uh.... I'll go uh... Try and... I lost... my keys!!!" He bounded away as quickly as he could, leaving the alien girls to all look at each other and laugh just before continuing to work.  
  
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"I really don't have a good feeling about this place." Veda moaned, twirling around in a spare chair. Goten was laying back again, in a state of extreme boredom. He nodded in agreement.  
  
"I mean, come on, a hospital cruise space ship? We need to get out of here soon..." Goten sighed weakly. "I think I'm okay enough to leave anyway."  
  
Veda stopped in her chair, studying Goten for a moment. His ki seemed to be at a stable level now, if only a little weak. She smiled. "I'll go find Trunks and we'll leave. Our ship might be ready, too." She stood up and stretched out for a moment and yawned. "See you in a minute. Don't let the nurses eat your brains!"  
  
Goten rolled his eyes as Veda left. Now maybe he would get some peace and quiet... Out of the corner of his eye, he saw something blinking. Curious, he turned and looked at it. "The camera..."  
  
The other two were doing the same thing. Goten cringed. Suddenly, he started to feel a bit scared...  
  
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	5. OH MONKEY CRAP

Author's note: Sorry, no more funny author's notes. Why? Because rules changed at ff.net. Maybe some of us could start a petition to change it, but I dunno. ::sigh:: Anyway, to the story, that's what it's really about anyway.  
  
Thank you for the reviews.  
  
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :::::::: :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ::::::::  
  
Veda wasn't having much luck. She was walking through the hospital, TRYING to find their long lost ship, or at least Trunks, but it seemed all she was getting was lost. The walls that were shining with such luster and brightness were now dull and cracked. An unsettled feeling was coming over her, and she thought maybe she should get back. But when she turned around, dead end?  
  
"Hey, WHAT?! I was just... huh?" She ran back, running her good hand over the wall that seemed to appear out of nothing. It was cold and bumpy, not at all smooth like the rooms before. And seemed older, as well. "What is going on here?" She thought out loud. It seemed like she was in a completely different ship altogether. And the fact that she was injured didn't help her uneasiness. For the first time in over six years, Veda felt....  
  
...alone...  
  
Usually she enjoyed solitude, because that's what she was used to before she met up with the whole pack of Earthlings. Goosebumps ran up her arms in fear. Not just any kind of fear, either. A fear of being... tracked. Hunted. Like a small animal, attempting to find some way of escaping from something much larger. Much stronger. Much faster.  
  
Suddenly, she felt a presence around her.  
  
"Trunks?" She whispered, backing away from the wall. "Ouf!" She coughed as she ran into something. It was warm and... not... so... solid. She screamed and jumped forward.  
  
"Hello... What are you doing here?"  
  
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Trunks looked around quizzically. "That's funny... This doesn't seem familiar..." He was having a frustrating time finding Goten's room, but after fifteen minutes of looking around, he found it. Thanking Kami quickly, he opened the door, to find Goten sitting up on the bed, looking intensely at something in his hands. "Yo, what are you looking at?" Trunks asked, walking over and sitting down in a chair. Goten looked up from what he was doing and frowned.  
  
"Trunks... You should have a look at this. I don't think this place is a hospital." He held up what he was looking at. One of the cameras. He flipped it open, and was going through the previous footage.  
  
Trunks nearly laughed. "Aaaaaaand what would you call it? A place where boo-boos are made better?"  
  
Goten growled lightly. "Dude, this is serious. Check it out. We're in big trouble. Look into it." He handed it over to Trunks, his onyx eyes filled with seriousness.  
  
Rolling his eyes, Trunks leaned in to see what Goten was so worried about. He peered inside of the camera and turned it on. He saw a black and white image of what he assumed to be the same room they were in, but something was wrong. "Hey, that isn't a hospital room..." Trunks mumbled. Goten nodded.  
  
"Just wait until it gets to the good part..." He sighed.  
  
Going on, the tape showed a weird looking alien walk in, skin dark and a tall Mohawk coming up from his head. He had piercings all over his face, and was talking to one of the nurses that the demi-saiyans had been treated by, except now they weren't nurses. They were innkeepers, and the room was set up as a hotel room. "What in the..." As it went on, the alien handed over a wad of what seemed to be cash to the 'innkeeper'. They made way to the bed, the pierced alien pushing the nurse onto it hungrily. After a few more moments, Trunks pulled away from the sight. "Uuuug, that is just nasty. Goten, why in KAMI'S name are you watching alien porn? I didn't even know it could be done that way..."  
  
"YOU ARE MISSING THE POINT ENTIRELY TRUNKS!!" Goten wailed. "Don't you notice something a little strange about that tape?"  
  
Trunks thought about it for a moment, and looked back into the camera. He laughed lightly. "Yeah, I had no idea that those hot alien chicks were so wild! Rawr, baby! ...I wonder if they still dish out those services—"  
  
"TRUNKS!" Goten cried, completely flabbergasted. "If you would cool yourself off for ONE FREAKING SECOND you would notice the severity of our situation. Fast forward."  
  
Doing so, Trunks had to go forward a few hours before they were done and asleep. After about an hour of sleeping, the innkeeper woke up, seemingly not even having gone to sleep. She backed up, still completely naked (Trunks gulped lightly, attempting to keep himself in check, as Goten watched on with a disapproving look in his eyes), and let out a hallowing shriek of laughter. Or, Trunks assumed it was laughter, because it was a mute camera. Two more girls bust into the room on screen, and just when he thought they were going to jump him or kill him or something, the completely unexpected happened, nearly making him vomit.  
  
The camera fell to the floor, breaking open, and Trunks staggered back. Goten looked into Trunks wide, frightened eyes.  
  
"Now do you see what's wrong Trunks?" Goten whispered icily. Trunks shook his head lightly.  
  
"Those... Those.... Those THINGS rubbed their giant, round, and awesome butts on me!" He wailed. "I'm going to be sick!" Goten looked on, a little disturbed.  
  
"Trunks."  
  
"Yes Goten?"  
  
"Let's pretend you never, ever said anything like that. Agreed?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
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Veda spun around, breathing shallowly, her pupils highly dilated. "Whose there?" She asked harshly, but surprisingly, she appeared to have bumped into thin air. "This place is EXTREAMLY freaky..." She whispered, still feeling the presence.  
  
The air suddenly became stale. Veda felt in the pit of her stomach the beginnings of terror come on, although she would never admit it. Unbalance swept through her, and breathing became difficult.  
  
IT HAS BEEN TO LONG...  
  
She screamed out and fell to her knees, the gravity in the hallway seeming to increase. The voice that boomed in her head seemed to be male, which surprised her, since this seemed to be a female populated ship. It was all she could do to stay on her knees, and even with her good arm supporting her, the gravity was so intense...  
  
YOU SEEM TO BE WEARY...  
  
"WHO ARE YOU!?" Veda shrieked, even the sound of her yell seemed to be weighed down. A helpless feeling came over her. 'Goten or Trunks would be able to stand this intensity... And they're not even full saiyan!' She screamed in her mind.  
  
HA HA HA... BOLD AREN'T WE?  
  
Incredible pressure began to crush her. Her arm buckled, crashing into the ground at an agonizing speed. She could feel her screams tearing up her throat even!  
  
I THINK I'VE HAD MY FUN...  
  
Much, much to quickly, the hum of intensity died. Veda fell to the ground in front of her, once again in normal gravity. Not even her saiyan body could keep from blacking out from the sudden change back. A laughing figure appeared out of twisting air in front of her, appearing to be the holder of the voice.  
  
"Too funny..." His figure was still forming, his face not quite defined yet. He hadn't become a solid color yet for the air was still forming his frame. "We don't get many females in this part of space... I wonder why that is? The girls have been having all the fun now for way too long..."  
  
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"I'm really worried about Veda." Goten said, pulling his shirt over his head. "She's been gone awhile."  
  
"Aaah, the brat can take care of herself." Trunks insisted. "There's no reason to worry."  
  
"But she can't even turn Super Saiyan yet." Goten replied. He slipped on his blue over shirt, and started buttoning it. "And have you noticed that ki is really screwed up here? It seems to fluctuate..."  
  
Trunks laughed at him. "Do you even know what that means?"  
  
"I'm not a moron, Trunks..." Goten sighed. "Now lets get out of here as soon as possible. I guess we should look for Veda first."  
  
"Can't we just leave without her?" Trunks laughed as they walked out. "It would be so easy..."  
  
"You know she would find some way to follow us, then kill us."  
  
"I guess you're right..."  
  
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Veda's eyes opened slowly. For a moment she forgot where she was. Home? No, she was pretty sure the whole blasting off into space thing was for real... On the ship? The crash! Aug, the blasted hospital! That's right! Well, at least, it SHOULD be the hospital...  
  
After realizing and recalling all that happened, she attempted shooting up into a sitting position, but she ached all over, causing her muscles to spasm. Wincing in pain, she lay there for another moment before a voice spoke.  
  
"Are you afraid...?" It was the same masculine voice from before. For some reason, it was softer in tone and more comforting. Veda growled.  
  
"No, just really pissed off." She snapped back, shaking her head lightly. An attempt to find the source of the voice was not even made.  
  
"Perhaps you should be. Considering the venerable state you are in, and the power I hold over you right now."  
  
"Oh, go screw yourself." Veda snapped raising herself up from the ground, feeling the voice was from behind her. "Crushing young girls who are injured isn't what I'd call really impressive!" She looked around her, determining that she was in a room rather than a hallway now, and it was a little dark, the only light source coming in from a single light bulb hanging down from the ceiling. Her lungs were on fire. Hopefully nothing more was broken from this encounter...  
  
"Listen here brat!" The voice boomed, making Veda's head spin in a world of hurt.  
  
"Ug, could you shut up? That blast of gravity you gave me doesn't exactly feel pleasant!"  
  
"YOUR STATE OF WELL BEING IS THE LAST OF MY CONCERNS!"  
  
Quickly she was kicked square in the back from behind. Veda was sent tumbling a few times, crying out sharply as well. "Owwwww! Hey, quit being such a jerk.... Oh, CRAP." Looming above her was a large, well built man with narrow eyes. She couldn't make out much about him, since the light from the light bulb was coming from behind him. But she knew he was probably a lot stronger than her, especially in her condition.  
  
"Child, you try my patience... Too bad the only female to visit this part of space for over a hundred years has to be as annoying as you..."  
  
Veda would be making another sassy remark right about now, if she wasn't so sore and a tad frightened. Also, a new kind of fear came over her, as she saw a glint in his eyes that she didn't quite recognize. Well, she had seem similar looks from other boys, sure. But those were BOYS. This was a MAN. A big, scary MAN. While there was a strong sense of annoyance and rage, there was also a hint of... lust.  
  
Veda pushed herself away hesitantly, confused and wishing someone was here to help her.  
  
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ::::::::::::  
  
"We want to LEAVE." Goten snapped, throwing his fist down onto the table, glowering at the receptionist. She simply kept her eerily happy smile.  
  
"I'm sorry sir. We have to finish repairing your ship and making sure you are fit to leave."  
  
"OH, I'm FIT TO LEAVE ALRIGHT. Do you want me to PROVE this to you?!?!" Goten was ABOUT to fling his ki around him carelessly, blowing up random objects around him, when Trunks stopped him.  
  
"Can you at least tell us where our friend is?" Trunks asked. "She apparently came after me almost thirty minutes ago, and we can't find her."  
  
A quick look of panic swept up into the expression of the receptionist, but she quickly covered it with a forced smile. "I'm sure that she'll turn up. Probably got lost in the hallways."  
  
"I'm not convinced." Goten said stubbornly. "Why is ki so hard to sense here?" He asked forcefully. The lady laughed nervously.  
  
"I, uh... I don't know what you're talking about sir..."  
  
"KI. You know, the ENERGY WE USE TO LIVE ON. This!" He conjured a ball of yellow energy. "Tell me why your hospital is so freaking screwed up NOW OR I'LL USE IT ON YOUR FACE."  
  
Trunks was about to pull Goten away from her, apologize profusely, and remind him what kind of creatures they were dealing with in a rushed whisper, but it was too late.  
  
"Well, we were going to save that surprise for you later... But I guess the cats out of the bag!" She cried cheerfully, standing up. "We'll have to eat you now. I assume Conray already has your little girlfriend; he's been getting hungry. We usually get guys around here. And we're still not full from the last visitor we had recently." She smiled wickedly, making Trunks yell out and back up a few steps. Goten's eyes widened, realizing he went a little too far too soon.  
  
With a scream, the receptionists back exploded with demonic looking wings, shredding her blouse. Her face became distorted to fit her long, carnivorous teeth, making both the boys panic.  
  
"Oh... FOR KAMI'S SAKE WHY COULDN'T WE JUST JOIN THE BOYSCOUTS?!" Trunks whined, sliding into a ready position, Goten following suit. The monster in front of them doubled in size, laughing at their terrified expressions.  
  
"You want to know why this place is so screwed up anymore?" Her voice was not longer pleasant and sweet; but rugged and deep. They nearly peed their pants. "Well, NOW YOU KNOW."  
  
"Goten?"  
  
"Yes, Trunks?"  
  
"I'd like to run screaming like a baby now."  
  
"Oh, absolutely."  
  
And so, they commenced in running like scared children, the monster following in close pursuit.  
  
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ::::::::::::  
  
Cesna: Hey, I updated!  
  
Veda: :O !! What have you DONE?!  
  
Cesna: Made an interesting plot. :D  
  
Goten: YOU ARE SO FREAKING OBSESSED WITH YOUR STUPID PLOTS. C.C At least it's interesting.  
  
Cesna: Horray! You almost understand me?  
  
Gohan: ::snaps awake, blinking lightly:: Uhhh? ::looks around, scared:: OH NO. I AM STILL HERE.  
  
Cesna: Well, finally, sleepy head. You missed ANOTHER chapter.  
  
Gohan: :D Really? HORRAY!  
  
Cesna: Guh. ::groans::  
  
Videl: ::wakes up:: Eh? Oh. Awww, I wanted to see what happens.  
  
Cesna: I'll explain it to you while I try and get another chapter of 'Carry Me' up.  
  
Videl: Huzzah. :P 


	6. Let me hold you

**Author's Note:** Yeah, yeah, no more funny author's notes in the beginning of my stories. Some nazi is going around reporting them all over and getting whole stories taken off the site, some of the BEST stories too. I think it's a dumb rule, but hey, the story is what it's all about, in reality. So yeah.

Thank you for the reviews.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
Trunks and Goten nearly stumbled over themselves turning a corner to run down a different hallway. Nearly all senses of who they were and what they were doing was lost as adrenaline controlled their every action.  
  
**_GRAAAAAAWAAAAAAAAAAARAAAAAAWR!!!_**  
  
"GOTEN KAMI I THINK I PISSED MY PANTS!!!!" Trunks wailed loudly, pulling ahead, strongly considering tripping his friend. While they didn't look back, they could hear the pounding floor with each step of pursuit the monster took.  
  
"TRUNKS WHY ON EARTH ARE YOU TELLING ME THIS?!?" Goten cried back, trying to think was difficult with his brain so focused on instinct, rather than logic. They needed to find Veda, for one. Then they needed to find their space ship to escape, but it was so beyond repair... "TRUNKS!!! TURN SUPER SAIYAN!!!"  
  
Not having the mental capacity to argue, Trunks happily did so, Goten following suit. Goten not having to instruct further, they let their ki carry them further into the hallway, both of them turning with highly charged beams, and shot at the beast. Hurrying on, they blasted off, still hearing pained screeches. It was then, Goten just had a disturbing thought.  
  
"Trunks.... Who in the _HELL_ do you think Conray is?!"  
  
Trunks thought about this for a moment, recalling that's who the 'receptionist' said probably had Veda. "I... Maybe... I'm not sure?"  
  
Goten had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. "We have got to find her, NOW."  
  
"I can't even sense her ki, how can we... WHAT THE?!"  
  
They just then stopped in front of what appeared to be the docking bay. "OH YES. THIS ROCKS." Trunks sighed out blissfully, bowing down before the large door. He pulled himself up quickly, and with a laughing expression exclaimed "Let's get out of here!"  
  
"VEDA." Goten snapped angrily. "Can you really leave without her Trunks?"  
  
"I guess not..."  
  
Just then, several angry shrieks reached their ears. The two friends gave each other worried looks.  
  
"We go after Veda, we risk not getting out at all, but if we leave without her..." Trunks thought out loud. "Listen, I'll get the ship. You go after Veda. You get to the docking bay on the other side of the ship, the one we originally came in through.... augh, right, you were unconcious. Head the opposite direction than this!!! It's the only way, considering they will probably block this way off."  
  
They both looked at each other with grave looks, before Goten ran off. "Good luck Trunks!" He called. Just as he passed another hallway, a monster similar to before crashed into the wall by him, narrowly missing him. It clambered off after him, while Trunks said a silent prayer, and entered the docking bay.  
  
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Goten sped up his pace greatly after hearing the monster crash into the wall behind him, keeping his super saiyan abilities up. Vaguely, and _very_ vaguely, he could sense Veda's ki. She didn't seem seriously hurt, just... far away. Concern began to fill him beyond anything adrenaline could stomp out. He couldn't let anything happen to her!!!... She was like a sister to him...  
  
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::**FLASHBACK TIME**!!:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
_ Veda had been living with them for almost a month, and she still barley spoke any English. She knew core words, such as '_food'_, '_tired' _and '_moron' _along with several others, but she still had a really hard time communicating. Bulma determined she was only about nine or ten, and just short of impending puberty. Goten had resented her strongly since she moved in. She took his room, making Goten sleep in Gohan's. Not that he didn't like sharing the room with his older brother, he was simply missing the privacy that was so available to him before. Not to mention Veda was a brat.  
  
It was a late stormy night, and Goten couldn't sleep. He could hear Veda shuffling around in her room, and just when it would seem she finally got to sleep, Goten would hear her move some more. Tension built up in his ten year old mind strongly, until finally, he charged into her room. He was really upset, and was about to yell at her, when he saw a sight that broke his heart.  
  
The noise he had been hearing was her crawling around on the floor, wearing nothing but underwear and a long gi shirt that Goku had given her. She was whining lightly, like an infant would do. She seemed to be looking for something... or someone. It was that night that Goten started to see her as more of a real person. Never before had it occurred to him that she was capable of more than being a tyrant.  
  
She looked up to him, her then large and bright teal eyes filled with something Goten had never felt before;_ loneliness_.  
  
"Umm..." Goten said, his voice lacking the deepness of manhood. "Are you okay Veda?"  
  
Her only response was curling up underneath her window, trying to appear as if she was stoic. But Goten knew better. He sat down next to her, and she was unresponsive to him. "Nun." She said, not looking at him.  
  
That was the word she would say if she wanted to be left alone. "Are you scared or something?" He asked, wanting to help her.  
  
"Nun!" She whined, getting up and jumping on her bed. "Sleep." Her tail wriggled behind her nervously.  
  
Goten wondered what could be causing this strange mood from her. "Veda, what's wrong?"  
  
"NUN!" She yelled, shaking her head. Goten heard a rumble of thunder in the distance, scaring Veda into pulling the blanket over her head. It dawned on him that she was scared of the storm brewing. "Nummy..."  
  
"Are you scared?" Goten asked, completely shocked that the stubborn child could actually feel such a thing. She didn't reply. "It's okay, the storm won't hurt us. It's just... ah..."  
  
Veda pulled down the blanket lightly, only revealing her wide, anticipatory eyes at him.  
  
"Uhhh... the sky has a tummy ache. It's kinda funny!" Goten said, trying to help her fear. "Come on, let's go look."  
  
He took her hand and pulled her down from the bed. She didn't fight it, but whimpered a little. They looked out of the window together. Another flash! Veda tried to pry herself away from Goten, but he held on tight. "Hold on a sec, Veda..."  
  
Just then, the rumble came that was to follow the light. Goten forced a laugh, and Veda looked at him quizzically.  
  
"See...? A tummy ache. Ha ha...ha?"  
  
Veda simply stared at him, blinking. He was about to roll his eyes and go to bed, when something very, very strange happened.  
  
_ She began to laugh.  
  
_ Goten thought hard for a moment. Had he ever heard her do this? Another flash of lightning. Veda laughed harder. The rumble. Harder. Soon, she was in a giggling fit on the floor, unable to contain herself. Goten wondered if she was laughing at his stupidity, but decided it was genuine, and laughed too.  
  
"Funny." Veda giggled, sitting on her bed. "Sleep."  
  
"Yeah! Funny! Now I'm going—"He turned to leave, when he found himself stumbling back. Veda clung onto his shirt, pouting.  
  
"Goten gone... Not funny." She was starting to look scared again.  
  
'Oh no, what am I going to do? I guess it's okay, for tonight...'_  
  
He ended up having to spend the night in her room, and surprisingly, it was okay. As soon as he settled by her in bed, she was quiet, and actually fell asleep quickly. He thought it would have been a one night thing, but whenever it was stormy, he ended up sleeping in Veda's room. He was the only one who could console her when she would be scared. _Scared_...  
  
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::**END FLASHBACK**:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
Goten blinked away the memory through his now bright green eyes. Veda, where could she be? He would change course according to where he could hear a monster lumbering about, and was praying that he wouldn't accidentally run into one. Losing hope, he almost gave up on finding her...  
  
_Brilliance_! The world of ki was now vivid! It was as if he walked outside for the first time in a long time. Was there a certain portion of the ship that distorted the sense of ki? It seemed so, because now he was sensing it strong and bright. But now, he was at a point of being _really_ worried about Veda. Her ki didn't brighten up a terrible lot, but he now knew exactly where she was.  
  
Left! He shot down the hallway, knowing that she was approximately fifty feet down, a little more to the right, supposedly in a room. It was distressed! Her ki was _distressed_! How could he think even for a second she would be okay? He had fooled himself into thinking they were in a safe situation, and felt terrible about it. Then, his guilt tripled as he felt another presence in the room with her. _'It must be that... Con...gay... guy...'_ Goten thought to himself. _'No!'  
_  
Just as he was not even five feet away from the door, a monster jumped into his path, howling at him, jaw dribbling with drool. Goten cried out and made his ki shoot up. He was going to have to go through the monster to save Veda...  
  
His brow furrowed in determination. No way was he going to lose, here and now, while his friend was in danger. He would win. _Gohan_ would win... Letting loose screaming and rage, Goten gathered his best ki and charged...  
  
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
"_Stop_!" Veda cried. "No, what are you doing?!"  
  
She tumbled to the side, attempting to crawl away, while Conray just grabbed her ankle and pulled her closer. "Listen... you... little... _punk_!" He growled. Throwing her back into a wall, she cried out.  
  
"You're such a jerk!" Veda whimpered. After doing this several times, Veda could make out different parts of his features. He was vastly different from the other cheerful nurses around, having shaggy hair, a broad nose, thick neck, and slanted, yellow eyes. He was wearing a sort of overcoat and maybe pants, but in the light of the room she couldn't really tell. "Just... just leave me alone..."  
  
"I can't do that, girl." He growled low, rolling her over onto her back with his foot. "All of the women on this ship are succubus. Meaning they feed off of sexual hormones around them, using them to create illusions. Do you have any idea how hard it was to resist them? Even the slightest hint of me falling into their trap would mean certain death. They respected my ability to resist them, so they made me their king...--"  
  
"Oh, like I care about your retarded back history, I just want you to—_AUG_!" He stomped down hard on her chest, seething in fury.  
  
"I guess my _point_ is... I haven't had someone for a long time, seeing as the only random space cadets we find are MALE... So stop struggling and it will be all over fast..." He pinned her to the ground and leaned in, making Veda screech at the top of her lungs. He brought one hand around her throat, squeezing it tight, making her gurgle. "I swear, I'll cut out your vocal cords if you don't shut up!"  
  
Veda's eyes widened in horror as he continued, closing her eyes tight, hoping it was all a bad dream...  
  
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Goten, when at full power, sliced through the monster relatively easily. It now lay in two pieces behind him. He laughed to himself. "Wow, they aren't all that tough. Well, one on one anyway. I can't believe me and Trunks were so scared..."  
  
An ear piercing shriek made his blood run cold. Starting off at a stumbling run, Goten came to right outside of the room. He couldn't find a door. Veda's screams were suddenly silenced. A thought came to him as he felt the other ki right on top of Veda... literally... He shook in rage beyond anything he thought he could have felt. With a scream, he broke through the wall.  
  
What he saw... _triggered_ something in him. A darker side of Son Goten was brought to light, and he wouldn't be able to think about it until later.   
  
It didn't take him but a second to kill this 'Congay' guy. He was caught off guard, and being off guard around a super saiyan is and was a fatal error. But it was the state Veda was in that really pushed him over the edge. She was bruised, beaten, halfway conscious, and her shirt was shredded. She could hardly recognize him when he picked her up. If he had come ten minutes later... Not now. He could not think about it, he had to get to the other side of the ship. Glaring at the mutilated body of Conray, he made way out using the same hole he came in through. He knew the way from here. 

> And he would kill anything in his path.


	7. Mission: Impossible

**AN:** Horray! Reviews! Errrr... Review. But one review still inspires me and makes my heart light and fluffy! ;P You guys are LUCKY that Myshel decides to continue reviewing my story! Because if she didn't... I would be sad and stop.

::Goten storms in and throws a hissy fit:: MYSHEL TOTALLY HAS IT ALL WRONG!!!"

::Veda huffs:: "Pssssh, romance? As if. Goten has cooties and everyone knows it..."

::I giggle:: "You two are precious together and you know it!"

::Veda and Goten sputter and stumble over words::

::smiles evily:: "Hey! I can get around the system! It's just really confusing now! Woot!" ::smiles evily::   
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::Mission: Impossible::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
Goten was... er... lost.  
  
He had run around the same spot easily fifteen times, probably more. It wasn't easy dodging these monsters while carrying the terrified Veda. She still hadn't said a word, but was clutching tightly to him. Wishing he could sit down and comfort her, Goten continued to ATTEMPT finding this elusive 'other docking bay' Trunks told him about briefly.  
  
There was _one_ hall he hadn't tried using... Yet whenever he passed by it, a horrible feeling entered him, urging him to pass. It was looking like he would have to ignore his instincts...  
  
_**GRAAAARAAAWR!  
**_  
Eeep! Goten turned tail and ran the other direction, seeing a monster jump out of another hallway that WASN'T there last time he ran by. Did this place simply shift according to the will of the monsters? It was looking like he would need to snap Veda out of it, because he needed her help.  
  
Turning a couple of hallways, he slid into the first room available, barley evading the charging creature. As it thundered past the door, he determined they couldn't sense ki. So at least there was that. A brief glance at the room told him that it was a closet, or something, because there were random objects placed in here, including a mop. Why monsters would bother cleaning, he would never know. Goten gently laid Veda on the ground.  
  
"Listen... are you okay?" He asked her, shedding his own over shirt to give. Once again a fury burned inside of him, seeing how not 'okay' she was. Hastily taking the shirt, she turned from him. Putting it on was difficult, considering the cast on her arm. Goten helped her. She looked hard at the ground after she was covered. Shame and humility poured from her eyes.

"Why?" She asked, biting her lip to keep from crying. Goten wanted to power down from super saiyan to appear less intimidating, but found where his emotions currently stood that was impossible.  
  
"...Veda, there are bad men everywhere. I'm sorry this happened to you..."  
  
She didn't answer. Goten sighed. Thinking quickly of some way to put her in a stable mood, he smiled softly.  
  
"Do you want a glomp?"  
  
"Oh, Kami, _no_ Goten..."  
  
"I think someone needs a glomp."  
  
"Do you think now is any time to...?!"  
  
"SUPER SAIYAN GLOMP!!!" Goten tackled her, as he would do as a child. Veda screamed out in half annoyance-half laughter. She could remember the first time he did that too...  
  
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::**FLASHBACK TIME**!!!::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::**JUST KIDDING**!!! ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
...and she could never find it in her to get mad over it...  
  
After a laughing fit, they sat there for a while, basking in the moment. Goten sighed contently, while Veda simply smiled.  
  
"Are you okay?" Goten asked. "Or do you need another?"  
  
"No, I think I'm okay." Veda replied, looking around. "So."  
  
"So."  
  
"I think we can safely assume this isn't a hospital after all, huh?"  
  
"Nope. I think not."  
  
"That... thing... back there told me the women are succubus. What do you think?"  
  
"Safe to draw that conclusion." Goten leaned back against the wall. "Trunks told me to meet him at the docking bay that we entered through. Do you know where that is? I've been trying to find it without resorting to asking you, considering what just happened, but I really need your help Veda."  
  
She thought about it, crossing her arms and looking at the floor. She titled her head to the side, closing her eyes. "I know... I know it's by the receptionist office... if we found our way there I could get to it." Suddenly she started laughing. Goten glared at her.  
  
"Did that guy beat you up harder than I thought? Shall I go mutilate his body further?"  
  
"Oh, no, it's just that you still have your bandage on. That's all." Veda reached up with her good arm and yanked it off his head. "Wow, it was really bad. Are you sure you're fine?"  
  
"I come from a long line of hard headed saiyans. I'm pretty sure I'm okay." Goten laughed. Veda joined him. "Alright... Let's get to finding that docking bay. I hope Trunks isn't already waiting for us, he probably won't be able to hold them off by himself..."  
  
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
Trunks Briefs made a fatal error in his calculations.  
  
He did not account for how he was going to get back out of the entrance docking bay. Someone had to open it back up, and he was sure that the monsters surrounding him weren't going to do that. Sure, the Capsule 5 was near full repair by the time he entered, but apparently the wires had been tampered with. It was something he couldn't focus on now, he was just glad the ship was in flying condition.  
  
Currently, he was keeping the ship airborne in the entrance bay, avoiding the throng of monsters underneath him. It was a swarming mass of... ugly. He mock landed a few times to fry a few of them, but it did more harm than good. They would just jump on, and the only way to get them off was to smear them against the walls. Let's just say he didn't try that more than twice.  
  
A deep temptation was driving him mad. He wanted to attempt leaving without his friends, but he knew he would never be able to do that. But what if they never came? Someone would have to get back to Earth to tell the others... _'Oh, screw it!'_ Trunks thought to himself. _'They'll eventually try and wish us back after awhile, they'll wish me back too!' _It had been nearly twenty minutes since he entered the way, and he had started giving up hope. _'That Conray guy probably killed both of them... MAN THIS SUCKS MONKEY BALLS.'  
_  
As if on cue, a familiar aura of gold burst through a wall. Turning his ship in the direction of the explosion, a smile swept up on his face. Goten and Veda stood there, slicing through the monsters to get to Trunks in the Capsule 5 ship. The super demi saiyan would deal fatal blows, and Veda would go through behind him to finish what he started.  
  
"TRUNKS!!! ARE WE READY TO GO?" Goten yelled, and Trunks got on his loud speaker. Voice amplified and slightly distorted by the ships stereos, he yelled out.  
  
_'YEAH. EXCEPT FOR ONE THING... THE BAY ISN'T OPEN.'  
_  
Goten exclaimed a curse, looking around quickly. Both him and Veda were had taken to the air above the succubus. Apparently succubus wings weren't that helpful, especially all being mashed together like they were. "Veda, get on the ship." He instructed after spotting something. Veda looked at him curtly.  
  
"And what about _you_?"  
  
"I'll be fine, you go on ahead." He smirked at her, a certain charm attained while he was super saiyan that she couldn't resist.  
  
Glaring hard at him, but trusting his judgment, she flew on to the ship. Trunks let down the ramp, and she entered. Not without a backwards glimpse at what Goten was doing. "You'd better be okay..." She whispered before disappearing into the ship.  
  
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
There wasn't much time to act. In the fury and berserk state of the creatures, they were making it more difficult by the second to get out. Goten blasted his super saiyan strength to make a path in the crowd of monsters, tackling through the door before they came at him. He slammed the door shut before they could come pouring in after him. What he had spotted earlier was a small control panel behind glass in the corner of the bay. It was apparently for opening the door of the bay, and the glass protected one from being sucked into the vacuum of space.   
  
His eyes widened in terror as he turned to figure out the control panel. Behind the glass, the monsters were crashing themselves into it, apparently attempting to get to him. Long razor teeth, flashing red and yellow eyes, and red charred skin all beat themselves against his feeble protection. "It won't hold forever, I need to get that bay open!"  
  
Trying to ignore the pounding on the glass in front of him, Goten fervently searched for the lever that would open the bay. He quickly realized he had not idea what to do.  
  
"Awww... _CRAP_!!"  
  
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
Veda watched Goten helplessly. The last she saw of his golden aura was when he broke through the door so far away, and a glimpse of it in the control room before it disappeared as the monsters swarmed it.  
  
"VEDA! GET _IN_ HERE!" She heard Trunks yell.  
  
"GOTEN'S IN TROUBLE!" She called. "We have to do something!"  
  
"There's nothing we can do, JUST GET IN HERE!"  
  
The saiyan enigma pulled herself away from the window and rushed in to see Trunks. His back was to her, but she could still tell how serious he was. His long, lavender hair was free of constraint as it flicked about while he was busy at work. Veda simply looked on, entranced by the complexity of the ship.  
  
"Veda, check for holes!" Trunks called. "We need to patch them up before Goten opens the bay!" He kicked back a tool box for her to pick up.  
  
"I already did!" Veda called, wanting to get back to watching Goten.  
  
"I have no idea what those monsters did to the ship, hurry!"  
  
Veda rushed off, throwing a worried glance out of a round window. Still no sign of Goten underneath the mass of writhing monsters.  
  
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
After studying the control panel for about thirty seconds, the monsters' work starting paying off. A sharp crack of glass caught Goten's attention.  
  
They were starting to break through! No pressure, right?  
  
Goten breathed out harshly. Focus, focus! Open the bay. That was what he needed to concentrate on. Scanning the board again, he could tell basically what the different knobs were for. He also had a good idea what would open the bay as well. Another crack! Blindly he grabbed a lever and pulled.  
  
The only sound he could hear was the crashing and thudding of the monsters throwing themselves on the glass, the only thing protecting him. He couldn't tell if he had opened anything... Aug! The monsters would have been sucked into the vacuum of space if he had...!  
  
He grasped the other lever he thought might do the job.  
  
The shattering of glass was the last thing he heard before it all went black.  
  
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
Veda spotted and filled three holes in the ship, and searched fervently for more. Yes, she _did_ want to hurry and help Goten, but little help she would be if the ship was unable to fly when they were ready. There was only one room she hadn't checked yet...  
  
She slid down into the storage room, plopping onto the ground with little grace, if any. "Ouf!"  
  
Cold was the air around her. Which implied... She hurried to her feet and searched. It had to be somewhere... Pushing aside a refrigerator that was not plugged in, she found what she was looking for. "Well, I'd say those little punks are more harmful than we thought..." Three large claw marks had made their way through the steel of the ship, so she pulled out a plate to cover it. Finding no glue this time in the box, she simply used a small amount of ki to fix it on...  
  
Center of balance off! Veda tumbled on the floor with a scream, wondering what was going on with Trunks. She grabbed onto the ladder tight as she tumbled by, her eyes curious and large. Her job was done. Now it was time to check up on everyone else.  
  
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
He wasn't out for more than a second, but for the time he was out detrimental damage was done.  
  
For one, a lone arm of a succubus had broken through. Two, this arm reached in far enough to grab him. And third, it had smashed his face into the glass, which is probably what knocked him out. Blood filled his vision and poured down his face, and he struggled to escape the grip around his face. Her nails were digging into his flesh, but hope still glimmered in the golden aura that still existed from his super saiyan strength.  
  
While struggling to reach the lever that he was nearly positive would open the bay for his friends to escape, another hand burst in. And another. He pushed the sound of breaking glass from his mind and shut his eyes tight. One of the loose claws had clutched his shoulder and tore him back. "NO!" Goten cried, now pulled back against the glass, fading from super saiyan. "I- CAN'T-LET-THEM-_DOWN_!" He yelled, screaming out when the monsters started tightening their grip on him.  
  
_'GOTEN!'_  
  
It was Trunks speaker, and his eyes shot open in surprise. What was going to happen...?  
  
_'I'M COMING OUT TO DISTRACT THEM, GET THAT BAY OPEN!'_  
  
Goten tried screaming out warning, but it was too late.  
  
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: 


	8. Trunks and Veda kick butt!

A/N: YAAAAAAY TWO REVIEWS! ::luffs SS 4 Goten and Myshel forever:: Feedback makes me a happy camper! I should prolly be writing 'Carry Me', but hey, I have a more fun time writing this story. Hee.

I swear I'll get to it eventually! Like, within a couple of weeks! Don't kill me.   
  
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::Trunks gets _HARDCORE_::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
With a giant burst of flame erupting from the rockets, the Capsule 5 landed, singeing and charring easily twenty more succubus.  
  
The door of the Capsule 5 chinked open slowly, while struggling to keep in the air above the frenzy. What it revealed what a black abyss. Some of the screeching of the monsters subsided.  
  
The dim lights silhouetted a tall figure. Trunks narrowed his eyes at the creatures beneath him. "You ready for this, Veda?"  
  
Another figure appeared behind him. "Of course." She smirked, only halfway visible through the shadows. "We've got to help, right?"  
  
Now all was silent through the bay. Trunks reciprocated the smile. "OPEN THE BAY GOTEN! WE'RE GOING TO BUY YOU SOME TIME!" Breathing in deeply, the two of them allowed their ki to carry them out of the ship.  
  
"Haaaaaaaa..."  
  
They both gathered energy, all of the monsters standing around (still about fifty left) looking dumbfounded. An explosion of power coming from them both made them back away, and even caught the ones reaching into the control deck pull away, Goten sliding to the floor.  
  
"VEDA ARE YOU SURE?" Trunks yelled over the roar of their ki power. His long lavender hair was flying about everywhere, his eyes just starting to flicker green. "YOUR ARM..."  
  
"I CAN STILL HELP!" Veda called back, looking across the sea of opposition. Her short auburn hair was flying away from her face. While she was nowhere near the strength of Trunks, she still looked as if she could cause serious damage. Cast considered. They slid into offensive stances.  
  
The yells they let loose were only matched by the power they unleashed upon the creatures that lay between them and freedom. And so the battle started.  
  
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Breath in... Breath out. Breath in... Breath out.  
  
He was fading in and out of consciousness. Goten had to get up. Had to open the bay. He just had nothing left... Even though the monsters were gone, they had left to go fight Trunks and Veda, he couldn't conjure up the power to simply get up and pull that lever...  
  
Blood flowed down his arms and chest. And he could even feel it fall from his head, and with it his power. It was all he could do to keep his eyes open. And he didn't even want to look at his right arm; it was throbbing with pain where the nails of the succubus dug in. If only he could just throw the switch.... They could all get out of here... His eyes closed. _'I'm sorry guys...'_ The happy faces of Trunks and Veda flashed by him, replaced by what he imagined was going on right outside the panel at the moment. _'I'm just not... as strong... as I should be...'_

_.............................................................  
_  
Goten was looking at his feet. He was walking. Walking where, he didn't know. He was just walking. Through a field of endless white wheat, it seemed. But it didn't matter. All he needed to do was walk. Think. There was no reason to give up, but he did. Why? Because he doubted himself, so he just gave up. There should have been something stronger driving him than the faith he had in himself. He sighed and looked to the mulberry sky. So, was he going to die? It seemed a fitting punishment for him.  
  
"What have I told you about that kind of thinking?" Goten lazily turned towards the familiar voice. He was shocked out of lethargy.  
  
"GOHAN?!" Goten exclaimed, seeing his big brother standing there, a wide smirk on his face. Standing about ten feet away, wearing the clothes he would wear when training with Piccolo. Stretched out behind him were transparent wings that glittered with a mist that seemed to fall from them.  
  
"Are you going to give up so easily?" Gohan asked, begging to stride towards him. Goten could only look at the ground.  
  
"I don't have anything left Gohan. I failed."  
  
Goten looked up when a hand was placed on his shoulder. "Listen, the Son family doesn't fail. They give up."  
  
He forced a smile. "Gohan... Are you alive?"  
  
His older brother smiled back. "You are. Stay that way."  
  
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
Goten's eyes shot open. "NO!" He cried, attempting to shoot up, but he was reminded of his situation. "I...won't..." He grunted, forcing himself to reach for the lever. He prayed that it would open the bay. If not... "Give..." He reached further. Only an inch away. "UUUUUUUUP!"  
  
With one last burst into super saiyan, Goten was able to reach the needed distance and slam the lever down. But with this new momentum, he slammed into the ground. He did not move further.  
  
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::  
  
"Veda, just stay by me!" Trunks instructed, in a heightened level of super saiyan. They had whittled down the number of monsters, and now there were only about ten left. Veda was able to finish off one halfway beaten, but wasn't able to be much of help after her cast was broken open. "You need to find a way back to the ship!"  
  
She was about to yell back about not being a 'kid' anymore, but instead yelled out- "Trunks! LOOK!"  
  
The fighting stopped and all looked at the entrance of the bay. It shifted. Whispers broke out among the monsters, _scared_ whispers. Then, a mechanical hum echoed throughout the place. Trunks yelled with triumph.  
  
"The bay! Come on Veda, let's get in!" He ran for the ship quickly, before it would suck them into space. "Veda?"  
  
"Where's Goten?" She asked as the monsters began to scatter in fear. "He's not coming out!!" She started off, but hesitated.  
  
"He'll come, just get in now! Before it's too late!" Trunks urged.  
  
"It'll only take me a second!" Veda yelled back and went to the panel, getting a sinking feeling in her stomach when she saw that almost all the glass on the half wall had been broken down. "GOTEN!"  
  
"HE'S FINE VEDA!" Trunks roared. Squalling a bit when a few succubuses flew by the ship, he looked back and saw the bay had opened up about a meter. Conveniently, it was having a hard time opening.  
  
Veda peered into the room over the broken glass and gasped. "Goten!" He was sprawled on the floor face-down and unmoving. "Trunks he's hurt _really_ bad!"  
  
"AGAIN?!" He exclaimed. He nearly ran to their aide, but hesitated when the ship started shifting towards the exit. A plan formed...  
  
"I'll get you Goten!" Veda cried, pulling herself in with difficulty. With one arm and against the pull of outer space that was growing. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Trunks lift off the ship. _'Is he leaving us?'_ Veda thought to herself, hurt. She tumbled into the small control room, and not without slices of the sharp broken glass, almost on top of Goten. "Goten, _Goten_!" She wailed, shoving him hard.  
  
"Veda..." Goten gurgled. "Get... out... of here..."  
  
"No way, not without you! If you didn't come and get me, you and Trunks could already be out of here safe! And plus... I would never forgive myself!" She hauled him up as best she could with one arm...  
  
The bay was half open! They were swept up into the air, screaming and clutching to each other as they flew towards the emptiness of space, death...  
  
Veda was _very_ surprised when they toppled into the ship. In a bit of a daze, it was all she could do when Trunks screamed 'SHUT THE FREAKING DOOR!!!' to comply. She slammed her hand on the bright red button. It shut with a sharp and sloppy 'SHINK'.  
  
"Let's get the FREAKING _MONKEY_ CRAP outta here!" Trunks yelled. Neither Veda or Goten remember that, however, for they were unconscious with relief.  
  
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::


	9. Demons and Boredom

**AN**: Man, sorry for the longest time ever for the update. I had the chapter half written, then real life started interfering. Stupid real life. I wanted to update my Teen Titans story first, but I'm just not coming up with the inspiration. So I decided to go ahead and update Alive. I like writing it the best of all my stories anywho.

Gohan: GRAR MUMBLE GRUMBLE.

Cesna: I guess that means you're unhappy...?

Veda: I thought you were more articulate than that Gohan.

Goten: I'm just happy I'm still alive in this fic. How come I'm such a loser though?

Cesna: Give me a break! The story just started, and that's the whole point. The main theme is growing up!

Goten: This isn't one of those lame puberty stories is it?

Cesna: For Christ's sake, NO. Just live with it already!

Veda:... can I open the story?

Gohan/Goten: NO!

Cesna: Sure!

Gohan/Goten: WHAT?!

Cesna: Why not? Go ahead.

Veda: HORRAY! On with the next chapter of 'Alive?!' ! Huzzah. Did I do good?

Cesna: Wonderful.

Gohan: ::shakes head::

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::Demons and Boredom:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Trunks sat back, a satisfied smile on his face. They were safe, they were fine. And why? Because they worked together. He never thought he would have seen Goten act so fearlessly, Veda so selflessly, or himself... Well, he was just that cool to begin with. Trunks had tended to his friends wounds, feeling an incredible sense of déjà vu, and was conversing with them about their next course of action.

"Well, I have to say we're in worse condition coming out of that 'hospital'. Except now our ship kinda works." Veda grunted unhappily, picking the lint off of the shirt she was wearing. They were all sitting in a circle. Trunks flipped around his pilot's chair, while Veda and Goten sat at his feet.

"At least I'm conscious." Goten mumbled.

"At least I... don't have whiplash?" Trunks laughed.

"At least I... aw, crap. My arm is still broken." Veda pouted. "And to top it off, I'm going to need years of therapy to get rid of the nightmares..."

"Soooo... Who was the Conray guy?" Trunks asked, making Veda and Goten shift uncomfortably.

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Someone who died fast."

Trunks looked between them both, a little confused. "What happened back there guys?"

Goten looked him hard in the face and glared. "She said she doesn't want to talk about it. I wouldn't want to either."

"What, did she get RAPED or something?!" Trunks exclaimed, getting frustrated. They fell silent, making him feel like a jerk. "Oh."

After a few moments, Trunks turned back to the computer, trying to turn it on. On the big monitor, a crack still ran down it, the screen just turned a lighter shade of gray. Trunks cursed more than audibly. "AAAUG! I should have... _MGAFAAAA_!"

"I'm not even going to ask what that was supposed to mean." Goten said, cocking his head.

"I bet it means we're still screwed over. Right where we started. This is just great. Is our navigator working any better...?"

"I'll give you one good guess." Trunks groaned, smacking his head down onto the console.

"I guess 'no'." Goten said. "What are we going to do now?"

"The only thing we can do is try to land on a planet soon before we run out of gas. We still have a bit left... I'm sure we can find something..." Trunks pushed forward a lever and threw down a few switches. "I don't think the ship can handle going really fast after the beating its taken. Better safe than... dead."

A funny squeaking sound interrupted their thoughts. Goten laughed nervously. "I guess I'm hungry..."

"Aug, why did you say that?" Trunks moaned, his stomach following suit. "Now I want foooooood..."

"I'll go check down below, I saw a fridge." Veda said, pushing herself to her feet.

"No, I'll go, you need to let your arm heal." Goten insisted, getting up as well. Veda glared at him. "Don't you start arguing with me. The more you rest, the sooner you'll be running around without pain." Goten walked back to a square hatch and entered the 'basement' area of the Capsule 5.

While she didn't argue further, she was rather unhappy, and seated herself again. They sat there. And breathed. And blinked. It was so quiet, they could hear Goten fumbling around downstairs. If it weren't for that, Trunks could have sworn he heard his blood pumping through his body. It was like this for a couple of minutes, when finally, he snapped.

"Veda, go look out of the window or something! The monitor isn't working at all, so we're going to have to do this manually. EXTREAMLY manually." He swerved around in his chair to face the controls as Veda pushed herself to her feet and strode over to one of the many small circular windows. She planted her face on it and looked around.

"I don't see anything." She said after a moment of looking closely. Trunks groaned.

"It's not the only window, go look around, maybe we'll see something before our energy runs out..."

After a second, Veda decided this was a good idea and left the room to look out of the other windows. Not thirty seconds later, Goten came up through the small hatch in the floor.

"Our fridge is only full of things even my _father_ wouldn't eat..." He said unhappily, rolling his eyes. Trunks groaned. His harsh blue eyes scanned the control panel, trying to think of some way to fix their situation. He was more of a robotics person than a pilot. Could this be so different? Well, if he were to create a monitor on the face of a robot... showing everything the robot was looking at... He leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes, his hair falling away from his face. Goten simply tilted his head to the side.

"What're you thinking about?"

"How to fix the ship."

"Anything I can do to help?"

"Actually, yes. Shut up and go away."

Goten narrowed his eyes and left the main room, entering the outer hallway of the ship. He felt like his feelings should be hurt, but at the same time, he greatly respected the amount of stress on Trunks. He was the only one who knew how to work anything with wires, having inherited technical-know-how from his mother. Goten would give his left arm to have that kind of intelligence. Ever since he could remember, he was constantly left in the dark when Trunks would start to talk about one of his projects, or his mother about algebra, or Gohan about... Well, whenever Gohan talked about anything really. Gohan... He never told him he was stupid, but Goten always knew by the softened gaze in his brother's eyes, he was sorry for him. Sorry that he inherited Goku's simple mind.

Goten touched the cold steel wall as he reached the end of the hallway. He had no idea what kind of circuits, wires, or power was coursing through them. It seemed it was a completely different world with a whole new language. Or was he just making it seem more complex than it was?

"_TRUNKS_! I see something!!" He heard Veda's voice cry from the other side of the ship. "...**_TRUNKS_**!!!! GET YOUR LAZY _ARSE_ OVER HERE!!!"

Well, at least he wasn't a brat like Veda. He supposed some things would never change. Goten decided to investigate what she 'found'. He meandered over in the direction of Veda's shouts. As he walked into the room that he suspected Veda was yelling from, he heard Trunks storm out, a very frustrated look on his face. He pushed past Goten, anger boiling the air around him.

"Whoa man. What's your..."

Goten was completely ignored by his best friend as he stormed back into the main room, adding another level of frustration to Goten's mood. Wondering what could have put off Trunks so badly, his onyx eyes peered into the room, seeing Veda not looking out of a window, but looking at something behind a large dresser.

"Goten." Veda said, not even bothering to look back. "This is... so _weird_."

"Do I _really_ want to know? Do I _really_ care?" Goten asked her, and by some weird force, walked up behind her to glare into the shadows that Veda found so interesting. "I don't see anything."

Who would have known these four words held so much destructive power.

"OH MY _GOD_ IT'S ON MY FACE!!! IT'S CLAWING MY EYES OUT!!! GET IT OFF GET IT OFF OH MY _GOD_ OH MY _GOD_!!!"

"WA, GOTEN!!! I'M SO SORRY, I HAD NO IDEA IT WAS DANGEROUS!!!"

"_OH MY GOD OH MY GOD_!!!"

Something was digging at his face, and furiously he was trying to pry it off.

"What's going—WHAT THE?!—"

The next few seconds were a blur, but somehow the-that _THING_ got off of his face, and Trunks helped him into a nearby bathroom to clean him off. Goten couldn't even bear to open his eyes to see the mess his face probably was. All the while Trunks helped him, Veda was yelling apologies and chiding someone named... Zantha...

"Goten, come on man, you've got to let me help you out, I don't think it's as bad as it looks right now..." He poured water on Goten's face, washing away the blood. "Alright, it looks like a few deep cuts, but if I can get them cleaned I might be able to prevent them from scarring..."

Meanwhile, Veda was clutching onto something in the bedroom, scared of what her new friend did to Goten. "I can't believe you did that..." She whispered.

In a few minutes, both of the boys emerged from the bathroom, Trunks with a laughing smile and Goten with a few bandages on his face. He looked very put off.

"What. In the hell. Is that _thing_."

Veda smiled cheesily. "Umm, Zantha?"

Goten looked dangerous. Veda opened her arms and revealed what she was hiding reluctantly. Both boys jumped back.

"WHERE DID THAT COME FROM?!" Trunks exclaimed.

"Behind the dresser." Veda said matter-of-factly. She petted its head.

"WHAT IS IT?!" Goten exclaimed. Veda smirked.

"Kind of looks like a cat." She replied. Her thumb found the green jewel emblazoned on the back of its neck. "Umm, a very alien-ish cat."

Silence. The creature, bearing a strong resemblance to a cat indeed, was not quite proportioned correctly to be a feline creature from Earth. The head was more triangular and large, and the body looked thin and brittle. Light blue fur erupted all over it, bright and fluffy tufts burst from the chest and ears. Large were its deep and green eyes, watching the saiyan males with innocent curiosity. They probably wouldn't have suspected it of any violent nature if not for it licking blood off of its paws.

Goten was afraid.

"Umm, he most definitely didn't come from Earth. Let's put it that way." Trunks insisted, stepping closer to get a better look. Suddenly, Zantha's face contorted demonically, hissing and spitting loudly. Trunks jumped back.

"I don't know why he doesn't like you guys. Maybe he only likes girls." Veda laughed, pulling Zantha into an affectionate hug. The best friends gave each other very freaked out glances.

"Then why doesn't he like Goten?" Trunks asked.

"Oooh, burn." Veda laughed. Goten simply rolled his eyes.

"Um, maybe it sneaked on while we were at that... succubus... place." He suggested. "I think we should throw it into the nice comfy vacuum of space—"

"_**NO**_!" Veda squalled. "I've always wanted a pet!"

The only response she got was incredulous stares. "I had no idea Veda had a soft spot for animals. She seems more like the type to torture them..." Trunks thought out loud, Goten nodding in agreement.

"I'll teach him to not be so mean! Come on, just don't bother 'em for awhile..."

"Wait a sec, if he's a he, then why in the freak did you name him ZANTHA?!" Trunks cried. "Is he gay or something?!"

"You _want_ to check if he's a boy or not?" Veda asked darkly. That was enough to inspire the boys to leave the room.

"I'm locking myself in another bedroom. Don't let him hurt me."

"I'm going to try and figure out if I can fix the monitor."

When the door shut, Veda smiled softly. Zantha jumped up on the bed with a yawn. Veda crawled up with her. Adoration was something she was not used to feeling, which in a way explained why she was so fascinated by having a 'pet'. Also, it amused her to see the boys so scared of it.

"You remind me of myself." Veda laughed. Zantha looked up to her with a lazy expression, rolling onto his back. "Oh yeah. You're a boy."

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Cesna: BWAHAHAHAHA!!! I FINALLY FINSHED IT!!!

Veda: ::looks around:: Hey, where's Goten and Gohan?

Cesna: They got bored and left. Don't worry, it happens all the time.

Veda: ::sulks::

Cesna: Next stop: Teen Titans fic! I've really got to get better about updating my stories... ::sighs::

Veda: You should be shot in the face.

Cesna: Been there, done that.

Veda: Oh yeah. Josh Maxwell?

Cesna: Yup.

Veda: He was cool.

Cesna: Stop it or I'll turn you into a ditz.

Veda: Noooo! A fate worse than death! ::dies::


	10. The Crimson City

Cesna: OMGZ, I'm TOTALLY updating!

Veda/Gohan/Goten: LIEK, GASP.

Cesna: I know. I'm so amazing.

Gohan: ... You've been keeping them waiting for... ::counts on fingers:: officially a million years now.

Cesna: Oh, pfftaw! Only a little more than a month!

Veda: They love me, they really love me! ::cries from happiness::

Goten/Gohan: O.O!

Cesna: Um, yeah.

Goten: I totally thought they would all hate you. What is wrong with my hypothesis?! I _hate_ you, so why would they like you?

Veda: Maybe they don't like _you_. Ha.

Goten: AAH! You jerk!

Veda: ....

Goten: What?

Veda: ....Do you really hate me?

Goten: Uhhh...

Gohan: Dude, you're toast.

Goten: ::cries and runs away::

Veda: ::runs after with spork of death::

Gohan: And Cessy, shouldn't you be updating 'Carry Me' anyway?

Cesna: ::shifty glances:: So anyway, ALIVE chapter ten everyone!

Gohan: Hey!

Trunks was almost driven to madness. Why did he even agree to this trip?

It had been five days straight of nothing but Goten and Veda waging war on each other. First, Veda's new pet 'mysteriously' ended up loose in Goten's room. Veda claimed innocence, but Goten didn't listen to her at all. That added with maddening starvation, chaos ensued.

Which didn't provide the optimal environment for thinking of innovative and efficient ways to fix their little navigation deficit.

Trunks had _tried_ to get them to get along. He _TRIED_ to ignore them. Desperately he wanted to just slam open the door of the ship and put them all out of their misery! He could get his mom to wish them back, right? _Right_?!

"VEEEEEDAAAA!"

The ship shook by the sheer power put into Goten's howl of fury. Trunks slumped back in his chair, trembling with frustration. His face sunk as he calmly placed his hands over his ears in an attempt to slam out some of the screaming to come.

"Zantha had to go to the bathroom SOMEWHERE!!" Veda yelled indignantly and stormed past the doorway of the main room, where Trunks was, and continued down the hallway to her room. Goten stormed after her loudly.

"And your definition of 'somewhere' is _MY BED_?!"

Their voices started to trail off, leaving Trunks to remove his hands from his ears and sigh in relief.

_"With the way you've been treating me lately, I'm **glad** he did!" _

_"Listen, the only thing that cat would be good for is eating! It's been nothing but trouble!" _

_"YOU ARE NOT EATING MY CAT!" _

_"Who wants CAT FOR DINNER!?" _

A pain filled, high decibel shriek filled Trunks ears, leaving him to wish he had left his hands there. His body tensed as Goten ran by, trying to remove the blue cat firmly planted on his face. Veda erupted into laughter, but it was washed out by the cries of Goten.

It took an hour for the two of them to calm down. Apparently Zantha was in a good mood when he attacked Goten, because he didn't leave any visible marks that time. Although, from their first encounter, Goten had a sly scar over the far end of his right eyebrow. The Goku look-alike was rather disgruntled about it. It didn't make him feel better when Trunks said it gave him character.

The lavender hair demi-saiyan was no closer than when he started to fixing the monitor, and out of desperation popped the glass off of the wall, when Veda called out to him.

"TRUNKS!!! TRUNKS!!! I SEE SOMETHING!"

He groaned and yelled back. "IF IT'S ANOTHER MUTANT CAT I COULND'T CARE LESS!!"

"NO REALLY!! IT'S LIKE... A THINGIE!"

Even thought he was convinced it was of no concern to him, he decided to check it out anyway. Who knows? It might actually be important... Trunks rose to his feet, leaving the mess of wires, tools, and glass behind him. Veda's door was already open, and he leaned his toned figure on the doorframe in a bored manner. "Okay, shortstuff, what is it?"

Veda's faced was planted in the small circular window in the room. "I dunno what it is. It looks like... something out of Star Trek..."

A million different scenes out of the series popped into his head, and none of them good. With great worry, he strode over to where his cousin stood and pushed her out of the way to observe himself. Oh the horror.

It was quite a distance away, but the glimmer that was barely different and larger then a red star actually looked more like a ship of some sort. He couldn't tell for sure, but it was definitely worth checking out.

"Veda?"

"Yes Trunks?"

"You rock."

She leaned back with a proud smile on her face. Trunks couldn't help but smile back. It had been... wow, five years since Veda had been discovered on Earth. It felt like so much longer, and at the same time, so much shorter. She was like a sister to him, as much so as Bra.

The smile softened on Veda's face, and she hugged him around the waist. "Thank you, Trunks-san."

A little more than shocked, Trunks was surprised into reciprocating the action. "Veda, you've grown up a lot." Was all he could come up with when she broke the random embrace. His reward was a genuine smile from the younger enigmatic saiyan. The young prince narrowed his eyes playfully at her, wondering why her mood changed so suddenly. "Well, I'm going to set course for this thing. Keep your eye on it, and I'll rotate the direction of the rockets."

Veda nodded, keeping her face planted on the glass. "I'll call if you're going the wrong way."

Trunks turned to leave, when he spotted Goten in the doorway. He gave both of them a puzzled look, apparently not realizing they even liked each other.

"What did I miss?" He asked, his dark eyes shifting to Veda, and allowing his gaze to slide down to her suddenly more shapely... Trunks noticed it right before Goten's eyes widened in horror. Trunks felt his stomach lurch and Goten ran away screaming like a girl into his room, where he met Zantha waiting there for him.

While Trunks helped his unlucky best friend for the enth time, in the back of his mind he could help but feel sorry for Goten. Because he just _checked out_ Veda's arse.

He hoped they could be rescued before this... accident... turned into anything more.

----------------------------------------------

"YOU'RE LOSING IT! A WEE BIT TO THE LEFT! YEAH, THAT'S IT!!!"

It was a miracle, one that was greatly appreciated by Goten, that Veda didn't pay attention to the near mental breakdown that happened because of her. He was sulking in his room, patching up all the areas Zantha might sneak in through, while Veda slowly shifted windows according to how well she could see whatever it was they were heading towards. Zantha was nowhere to be seen, and Trunks was completely focused on moving without hurting the ship anymore than it already was.

"Can you tell what it is yet Veda?" Trunks called, irked by the fact he couldn't see himself what he was aiming for.

"IT... IT'S REALLY WEIRD. I CAN'T DESCRIBE IT. IT'S... LIKE A CITY. A PIECE OF TOKYO IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE..."

She seemed to be able to describe it fairly well, actually, Trunks thought to himself. It looked as if they would be saved as soon as they could get to this place. Maybe. Hopefully this would be like Star Trek and everyone would speak the same language.

Suddenly Goten walked into the room. Trunks barely paid him mind; he was too heavily involved with the task at hand. Goten, seeing this, decided to leave with his gaze casted down. 'Man, everyone is so tense...' he thought to himself, slumping his posture. While walking down the red tile hallway, he saw an open door. A door he hadn't seen open before. Peering inside, he saw Veda, peering out of a window. Nearly forgetting about his meltdown earlier, he casually approached her. "What're you looking at? I still haven't been told what you and Trunks are doing."

"Trunks and you." Her eyes didn't move in the slightest from what she was observing. Goten cocked his head to the side in confusion. "That was inappropriate English grammar. Trunks and you. And we're trying to save ourselves... I'm about to faint from sheer hunger."

Trying to ignore the fact he just got a grammar lesson from someone younger than he, he prodded further. "Yeah, you're a full saiyan aren't you... You must be starving, huh?"

"Don't remind me."

Subjects to talk about were not coming to him very well. He knew he wanted to be a part of this, to help, but he felt like he was just getting in the way. He realized... he felt a little left out. Veda seemed to have some kind of relation to Vegeta, making her like family to Trunks. Well, he did share the saiyan blood with her, and he was Trunks best friend, but what could he offer to their unlucky group? Nothing. Trunks was stronger than he, also roads more intelligent, and Veda was extremely coordinated and survival handy. Her ability to keep cool under intense pressure never ceased to amaze him.

Goten on the other hand was not as strong as Trunks, and much clumsier than Veda. At best he could see himself as the stupid servant or comic relief. And even humor he couldn't do right. Goten walked away slowly, feeling depression ebb away at him. He was so much like his father, but Son Goku was the strongest fighter and one of the best people he knew. Heck, he WAS the best person he knew. Besides Gohan. Goten looked down and made his bored way back down the hallway, shoved his way into his claimed bedroom, and slumped face down on his bed. He was awful. Not only was he not an angel like his father, he only gained a fraction of the strength, courage and endless empathy that made his dad so great. There was nothing special about Son Goten, otherwise known as 'The Goku clone'. Simply a shadow. He could never be great.

He reached out his arms and sighed sadly. There were so many scars on his arms... A desire to cut grabbed his attention, but he simply fought it off. How would his friends feel if they found out? It would just make everything worse. They needed to focus on getting home... or getting after that _man_. How long it had been since he was thought of! Goten raised his head. They had come to far to simply forget about him now. But how? Perhaps he should just admit defeat, maybe use the dragon balls to find out and plan their next tactic from there...

Goten rolled over onto his back and stared at the ceiling. His eyes fell shut and he retreated to the back of his mind. Wasn't there something special about him? So simple he was... Selfish images ran through his mind. Goten imagined himself as the most powerful saiyan, slaying powerful enemies like Frieza and Cell single handedly, or maybe, the most cunning. He could outwit his attackers, and trick them into becoming his lackeys. The last thing he imagined before giving up rational thought was being an angel and investing time in others...

-------------------------------

"It's so amazing..." Veda cooed again for the tenth time. "We're almost there Trunks!"

A blue eyed glare did not reach her, as they were separated by a wall. "Veda, how close?"

"I honestly can't tell!" She whined. "It's like it's... so big yet so far... and uh..."

_'What a time to stop being articulate...'_ Trunks thought angrily to himself. "Let me flip the ship around so you can be closer." He rotated the jets to make the circular ship to a 180 degree turn, while Veda scampered into the pilot room and dashed to the window.

"AHH TRUNKS SLOW DOWN! FORCE FIELD!!"

Confused, he put on the emergency breaks which brought the ship to a near stop. "What are you talking about?!" Suddenly, their ship was engulfed in darkness. "Well... crap."

"The red city didn't like that we came close!" Veda cried, backing away from the window. She tripped over something and was sent crashing into the ground. Trunks might have laughed... If he hadn't heard the door chink open. Dim light poured into the room, ending at the top of Veda's eyes. Instinctively he held his breath and held tight to his chair, expecting to be yanked out by the void pull of outer space... but strangely... nothing happened.

"Well, it appears we have some humanoids in need..."

Both Veda and Trunks let out a scream when they saw who was talking.

--------------------------------------------

Cesna: Oooh, I'm so evil ending it here. But I must. It is... who I am.

Gohan: Oh, darn. Too bad. I guess I'll just go out for some pizza or something.

Goten: I second.

Veda: ...

Cesna: That's right!! Go you cowards! Veda will stay with me!!

Veda: Um, Cesna, just because you made me doesn't mean I don't get seriously freaked out by you...

Cesna: Betrayed by my own creation! Blasphemy! ::dramatic pose::

Veda: O.O Um, yeah, I'm leaving now.

Cesna: ::cries::

Gohan/Goten/Veda: ::go out for pizza::


	11. The ShigriBoune

**A/N: Disclaimers are against my religion.**

Cesna: ::prances about with glee::

Gohan/Goten/Veda: ::look on with confused expressions::

Cesna: I'm loved! I'm really really loved!

Goten: Ahhh... what?

Cesna: This chapter is only remembered because of Kurama's girl. I've been so INCREDIBLY busy- ::throws confetti:: -and then she reviewed- ::hugs Gohan::

Gohan: AAAAUG! ::shoves away::

Cesna: -begging me to update! I've never been so happy!!!

Veda: Well, um, now that you have decided to get around to it... Why don't you get to it?

Cesna: I SHALL!!!!! Alive chapter 11 everyone!

Goten: Kami bless you Veda.

Veda: She _did_ make me with a brain you know. Hee.

------------------------------The Shigri-Boune------------------------------

It was dark. The only light poured in from the suddenly open door, and a lean silhouette caused both Veda and Trunks to scream.

The figure stepped forward, hiding what little features they caught a glimpse of earlier. Veda pushed herself back in fear, her heart pounding tight. Trunks was aghast. Could it really be...?

The figure reached out and smacked a part of the ship, causing all of the lights to somehow mysteriously return. After wincing from the sudden brightness, both Trunks and Veda realized it was not who they thought.

"What brings you to this end of the galaxy?" The man that stood in front of them was tall and nearly perfect in proportion. His hair was snow white and stood up in short familiar spikes. His eyes were a crystalline, curious blue and his brow narrowed in thought. Features bold, he looked over Veda carefully, and let his gaze slide over to Trunks. The snowy haired man's clothes were sleek and dark, with strange intricate designs.

"I thought he was..." Veda looked to Trunks. "You know..."

"Yeah, he looked almost exactly like Gohan when the lights were out..." Trunks whispered back. The man's expression softened.

"Gohan, you say?" His nature seemed good, allowing the cousins to relax. "Well, my name is Xanith, and you two are in an _obscure_ part of the galaxy."

"Where exactly are we?" Trunks asked, raising up from his seat. Xanith smiled weakly.

"Well, right now you're at Orbos, a sort of 'rest stop' for passing ships. You aliens look like you're in dire straights..." He laughed at the state of the place, when Goten came wearily into the room.

"Was going on...?" He asked dumbly, not being paid attention to.

"What on Castor happened to your ship?" Xanith asked, walking through and noticing the crude patching jobs that Veda did a few days back. "It's amazing you were able to get anywhere in this piece of junk. Seems to have seen much better days though." He examined lightly while Trunks decided to speak up.

"Well, uh, Xanith... This is actually my mother's ship. We come from a planet called Earth, and we're looking-"

Xanith squalled and spun around, giving Trunks his full attention. "Did you just say Earth?!"

"Uhh, yeah?"

Xanith strode right up to Trunks, eyes wide in shock and admiration. Veda and Goten simply looked on cluelessly. "As in, SON GOKU'S Earth?!"

All three saiyans cried out different versions of the answer 'yes!' all at once, sounding more like 'YECOUALLY!'

"How do you know my father?" Goten asked in awe. Xanith laughed loudly.

"You're Goku's boy? Then I suppose you travelers are saiya-jin?" The trio nodded. "Well! I never thought I would see the day! It was a long time ago, I would say almost twenty years or so, that Son Goku, the first Super Saiyan in an eon passed through here, saying he was on his way home, to Earth. Ate a ton he did! And how could we not know him? He had just defeated Frieza!" Xanith looked over Goten and laughed. "I see that lug found his way back if you exist then, right boy?"

Goten chuckled lightly, not knowing whether to be embarrassed or grateful.

"Well, come on! We can treat you right, we'll talk over some lunch."

Xanith strode out proudly, leaving the trio to give each other the happiest looks they've known for over a week.

----------------------------

"Eat just like Goku they do..."

Xanith laughed lightly, watching the saiyan teens all but inhale their food. They were inside of the mechanic's quarters, and it ended up the area they got pulled to after hitting the force field was the docking bay. Each of them were tremendously and furiously hungry, after a whole three days of no food. The lighting was dim in the modest building, and not too much color filled it either. But still, anything was better than what they had been going through.

"Hey..." Veda said, swallowing her next to last bite of food. "I should bring Zantha in here, he would appreciate some food. Is that okay?"

"Another lad?" Xanith asked.

"It's her demon cat." Goten said glumly. "He destroys all in his path, excluding Veda. I think it's because they're both evil." She trotted off to go get him. Xanith looked a little nervous about it, though he tried to play it off.

"Well, uh, you never told me what you were doing out here in the middle of nowhere..."

Trunks breathed deeply, taking a quick break from eating. "Well, we were, uh..." He had to think about it. "What were we doing again...?" Goten gave him a harsh look. "Oh yeah! Well, we're looking for Goten's dead brother's body. Some guy took it and we don't know why."

Xanith looked rather disturbed. "Uhh, so some man just up and took it."

"Yeah. Like I said, we don't know either. We just think it's really sick and rude for someone to just... take him. Goten's rather attached to it you know."

"That sounds so wrong!" Goten exclaimed. "He dishonored my family by grave robbing, and I'm going to make him pay!!!"

Xanith pushed his plate aside, apparently loosing his appetite. Veda came back in with Zantha in her arms, who was purring gently. Goten got up suddenly.

"No more for me thanks! I'm full!" He exclaimed loudly. "Xanith, let's go into anther room while Zantha eats. It would probably be for the best."

"Agreed." The three guys got up and left, Veda rolling her eyes.

Goten slammed the door as they all entered an office behind them. "Man, that cat scares the CRAP outta me..." He shuddered and looked to the others.

"Strange things are happening." Xanith's blue eyes softened as he sat down in a chair at his desk. This room was lit much better, but it was smaller than the dining area. "It all started with Goku's arrival..."

Trunks sat down in a chair across the room from the white haired man, Goten sitting next to him. "What do you mean strange?"

"A few years after Goku passed through, a few scientists came in from the Tartan nebula. I don't know much, but I do know they left someone here. A very, very young child. Little girl. With a tail."

The two demi-saiyans gave each other nervous looks. "You don't think it could be...?" Goten started. Xanith caught on quickly and laughed.

"Oh no, there is no possible way it have been your friend. This girl had bright blonde hair and the most vibrant blue eyes you have ever seen. Cheerful little thing too. I don't know why she was left here, but I do know she's been working here as a sort of servant in the main part of the city."

Goten's gaze hit the floor, while Trunks perused the subject further. "Tail? You think she might be a saiyan?"

Xanith shrugged. "I don't know much. If you are interested, you can find her at the Shigri-Boune, the main rest joint in this bubble city of ours. Strange things have been happening... Something I do happen to know about the scientists that left the girl. They were very, very interested in the saiyans and their fossils and remains. Something about the importance of their DNA. Maybe there's a connection between them and what's happened to your brother. Can't imagine why else his body would get hijacked."

Trunks and Goten did not even need to say it to each other. "Thank you very much Xanith. Can you guys fix our ship?"

"Absolutely! I'll need a favor of you though, because I don't assume you have any money." He smiled devilishly. Trunks groaned.

"Figured... what is it?"

"While you're down there in Shigri-Boune, could you check in on a friend of mine, Kausho? He owes me a bit of chinkles, if you know what I mean."

"Uh, chinkles?" Goten asked.

"Right. Aliens. It's our slang for money. He won't be easy to find, because I would have gotten to him by now. He has some powerful friends, but I'm sure it's nothing a few strapping saiyans as yourselves can't handle. Especially if you, Goten, are the son of Goku. Defeated Frieza! You should start by asking around the bar. Someone's bound to tell you something... for a price."

"Sounds easy enough. Thanks for fixing our ship!" Trunks replied as they went to update Veda about their condition. Xanith smiled after them as they went through the door. For a few moments he sat there like that, then turned to get to get his tools. "I hope all the rumors about saiyans are true! They'll need their super saiyan strength on this one."

------------------------------

Veda: Wow, that was some serious SHORT.

Cesna: Hey, well, I'm so SORRY. I need some time to figure out what's going to happen next, and I want to get this up as soon as possible.

Gohan: I'm still confused.

Cesna: And confused you'll stay for a long time. HA. So right. Sorry for the short chapter everyone. And don't act so confused about Goku. Remember, I don't play by the regular DBZ rules. Cell never showed up in this dimension until he did in Mirai Trunks saga... I swear I'll get a story up eventually explaining all that... It will be the story introducing Veda. Hee.

Veda: I've been waiting a long time for that you know. I bet she's just lying. Ugh.


	12. Wandering and a potential fight

**Disclaimer**_Disclaimers are against my religion._

Veda: …WHERE IS CESNA.

Goten: What?

Veda: It has been over TWO MILLION YEARS since she updated. I could kill her.

Gohan: Then doesn't that mean we should, you know, like rejoice or something? That means she probably got bored with the story and—

Veda: So you LIKE your character being suspended in author's limbo?! I personally do not care for that!!!

Goten: …She's right. We've got to find Cesna so she can write more, so that she can eventually bring an end to our suffering by finishing this blasted story!!!

Gohan::groans:: Do you realize how long that's going to be for me!? I've got a bunch of stories in limbo for myself—

Cesna::strides in:: Helloooo hunnies, I'm HOME!

Everyone: CESNA?!

Gohan: WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN.

Cesna: Um, out?

Goten: For two million years?

Cesna: Uh, yes?

Veda: Get back to writing at LEAST this story!!!

Cesna: Well, was I missed?

Goten: No, we just want to be free from this horror you've inflicted upon us.

Cesna!! That's the nicest thing you've ever said to me! I thought I would never write in this story ever again, but you've given me hope. :'D Alive chapter 12 everyone!

::all but Gohan rejoice::

Cesna: OH YEAHZ. Some questions have been aroused, and I feel the need to answer. NO, this story is after the other sequel 'Carry Me'. Carry Me is sort of a mix of ideas from other fanfics I read. Yes, I'm unoriginal. ::cough::

Veda: GET TO IT!!!

Cesna::cowers and types::

------------------------------------------------------------

"This place is really scary." Goten said glumly.

"Well, get over it. We're doing this so that Xanith will fix our ship. We're lucky that he's even doing that." Trunks retorted with a seethe.

"I think it's kinda neat, you know, in a sci-fi sort of way." Veda chirped.

Shortly after Goten and Trunks left the shop, Veda trotted out after them. Being a saiyan, her arm was nearly completely better.

Orbos was an intimidating place, being a slum city in perpetual darkness. Many of the inhabitants were stranded there, being in similar situations as the saiyan trio. Goten immediately didn't like it; while Veda found it almost romantic in a cosmic sort of way. Not 'lovey-dovey', but almost an entrancing dream. Trunks supposed that this was a part of that 'full saiyan nature' that the demi's never quite understood. Their own little enigma she truly was.

The Shigri-Boune… one would think such an infamous club would be a little easier to find. However, after an hour of searching the small yet packed Orbos, nothing like Xanith's description turned up. And they were specifically instructed _not_ to ask around for it. After the fifth time passing Xanith's shop, Trunks snapped.

"This is NOT a fruitful use of our time!!" He whined loudly. "I mean, where _haven't_ we looked yet in this Kami-Forsaken little hell pot?!"

Goten went to comfort his friend, but upon discovering that Veda hadn't quite finished looking at something distracted him. Looking back at his friend and adopted sister, he became torn as to whom to go to.

"Guys, check this out."

Trunks heart leapt within his chest at the thought that maybe Veda had figured out the mystery. Goten was just relieved that Trunks was distracted now. Hopefully Veda had something worthwhile to say.

Her eyes were looking straight up. The two demi-saiyans looked up as well. It was some sort of building that matched the description of Xanith (being made of metal and red lights on inside), but it held a different name.

"Veda…. That's a different name. It's called Adeshak."

"Yeah, but how long has it been since Xanith left his shop for personal reasons? Since Son has been out here? Maybe it changed names. Sheesh. I say lets check it out."

"And besides." Goten added as Veda walked herself right in. "Who in the heck knows if that is how you actually pronounce "Adeshak" or whatever that looks like. Either way, I'm sure the people inside would know where the Shigri-Boune is."

"We're not supposed to ask around for directions." Trunks grunted at his best friend. "Xanith said that it could lead to legal problems. Not that we, as super saiyans, couldn't kick some serious-"

"I'm pretty sure this is it." Veda called from inside. "Come on!"

Goten and Trunks gave each other worried looks. Goten because he was partly hoping that they wouldn't find this strange club. Trunks because of the name change. Either way, it was the only lead they had, so why in the heck not? It's not like they couldn't protect themselves. Then again, never know what to find in the depths of space. Goten began to think of the time that Krillen, Gohan and Bulma went to Namek and found Freiza. Not fun. But it didn't seem that Orbos was very much in the 'attracting danger' part of space. Not like they had dragon balls or anything…

Right?

Goten shook away the racing thoughts of potential dangers, and stepped in with his friends into the club Adeshak.

------------------------------------------------------

Brilliant reds. Moving humanoids. Twisting strobes.

Veda wanted to dance with the other aliens that roamed about.

Trunks nodded his head to the beat playing throughout the club.

Goten felt like throwing up.

The saiyans stayed close together as they traveled, not having remembered their cell phones before heading away from Earth. If they lost one another, Goten didn't know what they would do…

Oh yeah. He could sense ki. IDIOT.

Trunks nor Veda seemed to forget this fact. They seemed confident and cool, very obviously related in this scenario. Not that Goten was the best at sensing ki. It kidna all blurred together if there were a lot of beings of the same ki level around. And both Trunks and Veda were suppressing their ki. Goten never really bothered with something like that. Call it ki ADD, but that's just the way he was. Nobody around seemed to care anyway. Though, since they were the only saiyans around, it made the signature easy enough to pick up. Just a bother is all.

Veda laughed aloud. "Live music!"

A stage with different alien musicians at play. An octopus creature at the drums, most notably.

"This place is amazing." Trunks said in awe. "Doesn't seem like the criminal infested Shigri-Goo-Goo or whatever."

Goten laughed lightly then coughed harshly into his fist. "Takeacoughlookatthecoughbar."

"Wow dude. You should get that checked out, sounds nasty-"

"COUGHBARCOUGH"

Trunks could have kicked himself for missing it, but all three of them took a look at the bar and about keeled over right then. Veda was the only one who managed to laugh.

"Well, that figures."

Rather huge aliens sat upon the rather small seats at the bar. Some looked like fish, some looked like bears, some rats, some octopuses, some just plain strange. But none of them looked very kind. Trunks stood forward first.

"Well, we're not going to get anywhere without trying." He flashed Goten and Veda Vegeta's smile. "Let's go in case one of them tries to beat the crap out of me."

They walked up to the least threatening of the group of humanoids.

"I'm looking for someone." Trunks said, very straightforward. "Could you-?"

"Chinkles." The fish-like alien insisted. Trunks looked to Goten and Veda with a nervous laugh.

"Well, er, uh, we don't exactly have anything…"

"Then you don't get nuthin'." The alien snorted through his gills and went back to drinking some green liquid. Others around him chuckled too.

"Did you try 'please'?" Veda drawled.

"Shut up, I don't suppose you have a better idea! Not like Xanith gave us money…" Trunks walked back to the group and they huddled on the idea in a circle. Suddenly, you could almost see a light bulb go off over Veda's head.

"Got it."

"Got what? We've got nothing." Trunks shot.

Veda flipped her shorter, spiked hair and made a sound close to purring, touching shoulders with her cousin. "Feminine charm."

Shock came first. Then hysterical laughing from both demi-saiyans. With a snort and a trot, Veda went to try her hand on a more humanoid alien. And by made way, she stomped as hard as her saiyan body could, making the whole club shake with her fury. Suddenly, Goten became grave.

"She can't be serious, can she?" He thought aloud. "I didn't even know she knew what that MEANT."

"This should be amusing." Trunks said, urging off the last bit of chuckles.

"So sir…" Veda started, sitting down next to a creature with lime green skin and blue hair. "You going to tell me where Kausho is?"

"No." He took a long gulp from his mug.

"Then you leave me no choice…" She brought her hands in close to her chest.

"OH KAMI NO!" Goten screamed, reaching over to cover Trunks eyes. "VEDA, WRONG KIND OF FEMININE CHARM!!!"

Goten caught the attention of all of the drinkers around the bar, including the bartendress. Veda paused what she was doing to look on with the others, looking just as dumbfounded as the rest of them.

"I was gathering ki to blow off his head." She said, still and blinking.

"Dude, get your hands off my face." Trunks flapped his hands away. Veda shrugged and grabbed the guy up by the cuff of his shirt.

"Listen, you-" She growled. "You're going to tell me and tell me now before I get angry."

"Oh please." He sneered, unaffected by her threat. "Your power level is mediocre."

"You don't have any idea- wait, you know how to sense ki?" Veda blinked away her rage.

"Most of us have known how to since Son came here years ago." Veda let go of him and breathed out slowly.

"Hey, that dude is my dad!" Goten said loudly.

Awe and eyes met Goten as he said this.

"The son of Son?"

"There's no way…"

"He does look like him, just with shorter hair…"

"Well, uh, yeah! He sent me this way to have a word with Kausho." Goten boomed, trying to subtly make himself look bigger by puffing out his chest, hoping it would make him look more like his father. "Anyone tell me where he is?"

Everyone at the bar was more than obliged to point in the direction of this certain door. It took a moment for the trio to spot it. On the other side of the crowd, and they could see it said 'employees only'. Good old saiyan sight. Veda touched a finger to her chin.

"I don't have to point it out. How do we get in?" She asked Trunks. This aggravated Goten a little, Trunks always being the one who was the leader. However, it just made sense that way, seeing as he was the smart one.

"We're saiyans, let's just walk in."

----------------------------------------------------------------

Cesna: Wow, it's been awhile since I wrote for DBZ. O.O

Veda: …. Has your writing gotten worse?

Goten: Who cares? The plot is inching along and we're that much closer to being free.

Cesna: Shut up, I'm a little rusty! Anyway, reviews would be nice, but they're not necessary.

Gohan::eats popcorn::


End file.
